Here are some of my thoughts and feelings about the show Circle Mirror Transformation. In summary, it was intensely real to me. Having the privilege of being a part of drama club during my polytechnic days, the activities in Circle Mirror Transformation definitely had a ring of familiarity to it.
The show is about average people, real issues and their interaction with one another. It is about how most of us act to cover up our fears and weakness, how sometimes all it takes is the right trigger and the right opportunity for these issues to intensify and surface. When it does, majority of us will be hoping for a little help and a listening ear but yet we hold back and play down the moment, acting as if it was something else. As we grow older, we have all become very good at this. So here is a play about a bunch of people learning how to act. How apt and ironic at the same time.
I love the way how little moments of awkwardness were cleverly directed to pop up at the appropriate moments throughout the show. One such moment was when Adrian Pang had the conversation with Neo Swee Lin about night terrors. Clearly Adrian touched onto a sensitive area of Swee Lin's. She looked for a quick moment as if she was pleading for help, wanting more advice or at least to hear more from Adrian and Adrian struggled to find a right approach to offer his help and that little awkwardness surfaced. It was so real. How many times in life do we see this play out time and again? More often than we care to admit.
Although it was an immensely fun show filled with laughter, it is undeniably a well thought out production that showcases about interpersonal relationships between your average run of the mill people. That's how Pangdemonium won me over again with this production - simply because I can relate to the characters as they seemed so real.
Below are some photos of the cast with Adrian thanking the sponsors after the show. You can see how close we were to the stage.
