A NOTE WENT OFF IN MY HEAD
by A GROUP OF PEOPLE (AGOP) / Singapore
- 31 Mar - 2 Apr 2011
- Thu – Sat, 8pm
- Esplanade Theatre Studio
- (1hr 15mins, no intermission)
-
Tickets: $25
For concessions and savings packages click here
AGOP (collectively as well as individually) is nominated in various categories in the 11th Straits Times Life! Theatre Awards!
The categories are:
The categories are:
- Best Ensemble
- Production of the Year - A Cage Goes In Search of A Bird
- Oliver Chong and Nelson Chia go head to head in the “Best Actor” category for their performances in Invisibility/Breathing and White Soliloquy
- Lighting Designer, Lim Woan Wen and Sound Artist Darren Ng for
A Note Went Off In My Head are also nominated in their respective categories
"With their sophomore effort, A GROUP OF PEOPLE were tight without being uptight. I can't wait to see what they'll come up with next, when they fully embrace their inner madness. "
- TODAYONLINE (A Cage Goes in Search of a Bird)
- TODAYONLINE (A Cage Goes in Search of a Bird)
I was awakened by a mighty Monotone
that they hummed and drummed in resonance.
Consummate and obstinate,
it perpetuates and permeates.
A community emerged as its members crossed borders to meet one another at the quiet front. Rising from their collapsed pasts, they attempted to re-imagine a harmonised society, doing the best they could with the instruments they had inherited. Then a note went off, something cracked, and discordance ensued.
A note went off in my head,
A different tone.
It got louder and louder and they yowled.
HARMONISE. YOU ARE OUT OF LINE.
Will that lunatic wail promise to be the new sound mind?
From A GROUP OF PEOPLE comes a play about overtones, undertones, syncopation and symphony, and the quest for harmony in a cacophony of electronica, hoots, cackles and howls.
Presented by A GROUP OF PEOPLE (AGOP) in collaboration with
Esplanade – Theatres on the Bay as part of The Studios
EXPLORATIONS: Find out more about the works being performed. Join us in an informal post-performance talk with the artists on Fri 1 April.
Conceived and Created by:
Nelson Chia, Oliver Chong, Koh Wan Ching, Timothy Nga and Edith Podesta
With:
Lim Woan Wen and Darren Ng
Helmed by:
Oliver Chong
A GROUP OF PEOPLE
Formed in July 2008, A GROUP OF PEOPLE is an ensemble collective founded by Nelson Chia, Oliver Chong, Koh Wan Ching, Timothy Nga and Edith Podesta. AGOP is an ensemble because its core is held together by a common language in work; it is a collective because its edges are kept porous to encourage collaboration. AGOP believes in regular training for actors and the crossing of safe-boundaries in creations. It bases its training and working philosophy on the Suzuki Method of Actor Training and Anne Bogart's Viewpoints and is committed to the exploration of collaborative approaches in their creation process. AGOP sees itself as a project that strives to discover new modes of theatre production that transcend the mainstream model.
Nelson Chia
A theatre director / actor / educator, Nelson graduated with a BA (Hons) in Theatre Studies from NUS and an MA in directing from Goldsmiths College. He was a Resident Artist at The Theatre Practice, had lectured and subsequently headed the Theatre Department at Nanyang Academy of Fine Arts and was an Associate Artist with The Substation. He had worked with numerous theatre companies in Singapore as a freelance performer /director. Nelson is currently a lecturer in the Theatre Studies Programme at NUS, and the Associate Artistic Director of Toy Factory Productions Ltd. He is a founding member of ensemble collective A GROUP OF PEOPLE.
Oliver Chong
As Resident Director/Artist of The Finger Players, Oliver has shown his visual flair, directorial ingenuity and talent as a playwright in productions such as I'm Just A Piano Teacher (2006), Pinocchio's Complex (2008) and Cat, Lost and Found (2009). He is known for his strong visual style and the use of the surreal to bring a more vivid perspective to the themes of his works. His efforts won him numerous nominations at the Straits Times Life! Theatre Awards including Best Production of the year and Best Director.
Oliver is a founding member of the ensemble collective A GROUP OF PEOPLE.
Koh Wan Ching
Wan Ching is a bilingual performer who has worked with several theatre companies including The Theatre Practice, Toy Factory Theatre Ensemble, puppet theatre companies The Finger Players and Paper Monkey Theatre, as well as dance company ECNAD. She is an Associate Artist with Drama Box and recently devised and performed in Drama Box's ignorLAND of its Desires (2009), staged in an outdoor location in the complex and colourful vicinity of Geylang. She is a founding member of A GROUP OF PEOPLE.
Timothy Nga
A television and theatre actor, host and corporate trainer, Timothy's recent stage credits include The Art of Living in the In Between with Cake Theatrical Productions, A Cage Goes in Search of a Bird with A GROUP OF PEOPLE and Do Not Disturb – Late Checkout Please with Spare Room Productions.
Recent television credits include major roles in Fighting Spiders on Mediacorp Channel 5, Zero Hero on Mediacorp Okto and as the host of What's Your Position? on Channel News Asia.
Timothy is a founding member of ensemble collective, A GROUP OF PEOPLE.
Edith Podesta
Edith Podesta is a graduate of NIDA's Acting and Movement Studies courses, who has worked extensively across Australia as an actor, director, choreographer, movement consultant and teacher. As an actor Edith works across all mediums. Her television credits include All Saints, Blue Heelers, Fire Flies, Love My Way and HeadLand. Her theatre credits include There is No Need to Wake Up directed by Barrie Kosky for the Olympic Arts Festival and Death in Venice directed by Jim Sharman (Opera Australia). While in Singapore she has appeared on stage in Home Boxes directed by Benjamin Ho and LIV directed by Nelson Chia for the Singapore Arts Festival. Edith is a founding member of A GROUP OF PEOPLE.
Darren Ng
Darren Ng is a Singapore-based sound artist and music composer whose eclectic and unique style have established him as one of the most sought after sound and music composer in the local theatre and international film, contemporary dance and art scene. His works have been compared to Erik Satie, Ryuichi Sakamoto and Ben Frost by international music reviewers from Europe and Asia. A multi-instrumentalist trained in classical piano, he has been exploring minimalist sound art, psycho-acoustic performances and installations. He was invited to perform in numerous prestigious international music festivals across the globe.
Currently an Associate Sound Artist for The Finger Players, Darren has been active in the theatre and sound art scene for the past decade with more than 150 arts productions under his belt and had won several ST Life! Theatre Awards for Best Sound.
www.sonicbrat.com
Lim Woan Wen
A nocturnal being with an acute interest in light and darkness, Woan Wen is a recipient of the inaugural National Arts Council Arts Professional Scholarship 2001 and was trained at The Hong Kong Academy for Performing Arts in Stage Lighting Design.
To date, she has lit over 100 theatre, dance and cross-disciplinary projects and has received 6 nominations and 3 Best Lighting Design awards at the Straits Times Life! Theatre Awards between 2006-2010.
Her work has also been seen in Kunming, Budapest, Fukuoka, Taipei, Barcelona, Milan and Vienna. She has been an Associate Lighting Designer with local theatre company The Finger Players since 2004.
Nelson Chia, Oliver Chong, Koh Wan Ching, Timothy Nga and Edith Podesta
With:
Lim Woan Wen and Darren Ng
Helmed by:
Oliver Chong
A GROUP OF PEOPLE
Formed in July 2008, A GROUP OF PEOPLE is an ensemble collective founded by Nelson Chia, Oliver Chong, Koh Wan Ching, Timothy Nga and Edith Podesta. AGOP is an ensemble because its core is held together by a common language in work; it is a collective because its edges are kept porous to encourage collaboration. AGOP believes in regular training for actors and the crossing of safe-boundaries in creations. It bases its training and working philosophy on the Suzuki Method of Actor Training and Anne Bogart's Viewpoints and is committed to the exploration of collaborative approaches in their creation process. AGOP sees itself as a project that strives to discover new modes of theatre production that transcend the mainstream model.
Nelson Chia
A theatre director / actor / educator, Nelson graduated with a BA (Hons) in Theatre Studies from NUS and an MA in directing from Goldsmiths College. He was a Resident Artist at The Theatre Practice, had lectured and subsequently headed the Theatre Department at Nanyang Academy of Fine Arts and was an Associate Artist with The Substation. He had worked with numerous theatre companies in Singapore as a freelance performer /director. Nelson is currently a lecturer in the Theatre Studies Programme at NUS, and the Associate Artistic Director of Toy Factory Productions Ltd. He is a founding member of ensemble collective A GROUP OF PEOPLE.
Oliver Chong
As Resident Director/Artist of The Finger Players, Oliver has shown his visual flair, directorial ingenuity and talent as a playwright in productions such as I'm Just A Piano Teacher (2006), Pinocchio's Complex (2008) and Cat, Lost and Found (2009). He is known for his strong visual style and the use of the surreal to bring a more vivid perspective to the themes of his works. His efforts won him numerous nominations at the Straits Times Life! Theatre Awards including Best Production of the year and Best Director.
Oliver is a founding member of the ensemble collective A GROUP OF PEOPLE.
Koh Wan Ching
Wan Ching is a bilingual performer who has worked with several theatre companies including The Theatre Practice, Toy Factory Theatre Ensemble, puppet theatre companies The Finger Players and Paper Monkey Theatre, as well as dance company ECNAD. She is an Associate Artist with Drama Box and recently devised and performed in Drama Box's ignorLAND of its Desires (2009), staged in an outdoor location in the complex and colourful vicinity of Geylang. She is a founding member of A GROUP OF PEOPLE.
Timothy Nga
A television and theatre actor, host and corporate trainer, Timothy's recent stage credits include The Art of Living in the In Between with Cake Theatrical Productions, A Cage Goes in Search of a Bird with A GROUP OF PEOPLE and Do Not Disturb – Late Checkout Please with Spare Room Productions.
Recent television credits include major roles in Fighting Spiders on Mediacorp Channel 5, Zero Hero on Mediacorp Okto and as the host of What's Your Position? on Channel News Asia.
Timothy is a founding member of ensemble collective, A GROUP OF PEOPLE.
Edith Podesta
Edith Podesta is a graduate of NIDA's Acting and Movement Studies courses, who has worked extensively across Australia as an actor, director, choreographer, movement consultant and teacher. As an actor Edith works across all mediums. Her television credits include All Saints, Blue Heelers, Fire Flies, Love My Way and HeadLand. Her theatre credits include There is No Need to Wake Up directed by Barrie Kosky for the Olympic Arts Festival and Death in Venice directed by Jim Sharman (Opera Australia). While in Singapore she has appeared on stage in Home Boxes directed by Benjamin Ho and LIV directed by Nelson Chia for the Singapore Arts Festival. Edith is a founding member of A GROUP OF PEOPLE.
Darren Ng
Darren Ng is a Singapore-based sound artist and music composer whose eclectic and unique style have established him as one of the most sought after sound and music composer in the local theatre and international film, contemporary dance and art scene. His works have been compared to Erik Satie, Ryuichi Sakamoto and Ben Frost by international music reviewers from Europe and Asia. A multi-instrumentalist trained in classical piano, he has been exploring minimalist sound art, psycho-acoustic performances and installations. He was invited to perform in numerous prestigious international music festivals across the globe.
Currently an Associate Sound Artist for The Finger Players, Darren has been active in the theatre and sound art scene for the past decade with more than 150 arts productions under his belt and had won several ST Life! Theatre Awards for Best Sound.
www.sonicbrat.com
Lim Woan Wen
A nocturnal being with an acute interest in light and darkness, Woan Wen is a recipient of the inaugural National Arts Council Arts Professional Scholarship 2001 and was trained at The Hong Kong Academy for Performing Arts in Stage Lighting Design.
To date, she has lit over 100 theatre, dance and cross-disciplinary projects and has received 6 nominations and 3 Best Lighting Design awards at the Straits Times Life! Theatre Awards between 2006-2010.
Her work has also been seen in Kunming, Budapest, Fukuoka, Taipei, Barcelona, Milan and Vienna. She has been an Associate Lighting Designer with local theatre company The Finger Players since 2004.



