Saturday, April 28, 2007

Superstars: Asia is One + The Phantom of the Opera

Hello!

Today I went to see The Phantom of the Opera and then I went to the National Museum to see the Leslie Kee photography exhibition.=)

I LOVE The Phantom of the Opera's music!!! =D I think Andrew Lloyd Webber did a fabulous job in creating music that can transcend time. I must say that I definitely love The Phantom of the Opera for the musical score rather than the story. I find the story annoying but must grudgingly admit that it is rather engaging. The music though, is the main draw.=)

The set was rather extravagant and very well done. Theatre is pretty high-tech these days, long gone are the sparse sets of the Elizabethan era. Today, there were pyrotechnics, fire/sparks and elaborate sets. They had resplendent costumes as well that really added a level of grandeur to the whole production.^_^

The acting wasn't too bad as well and the live orchestra really added a punch to the musical.^_^ As for their singing, I must say that they weren't half-bad! ^_^ Although Christine had a rather warbly, operatic singing style [I much prefer Sarah Brightman's clear and strong voice], she delivered quite well, except for a few wobbly notes here and there. The Phantom and Raoul also gave strong performances though Michael Crawford as the Phantom will haunt me forever with his wonderfully hypnotic voice.=)

I did actually wonder if Gackt could make it as the Phantom then hastily decided that his funny pronounciation wouldn't enhance the experience much.=P

Thus, it was all in all a dramatic and fun performance.=) I loved the music and since they didn't screw up much, it was pretty enjoyable.^_^

After parting with my watching-companions [we lunched at Space @ My Humble House which currently runs on a super pared-down menu, leaving you with little choice and merely acceptable food.], I headed for the National Museum. It is highly inaccessible from it's nearest bus stop.-_-"


I love the Colonial architecture that is represented in the facade of the building and I like the newly renovated interiors as well.=) The soaringly high ceilings leave the area with a great feeling of loads of space but sadly, because it's so empty, it can feel quite cold.


The entrance.


The newly renovated interior.


The beautiful stained glass roof.

And what I went to see!


^_^v

Leslie Kee is a Singaporean photographer based in Japan. This exhibition features works from his latest photobook called "Superstars" [or something like that] and has celebrity portraits inside.=)

I went there with the hope of seeing the Gackt image featured in the book and came away glad to have gone because I really like his works/style. ^_^ He not only manages to capture unique and beautiful moments/angles of the celebrities, but he also manages to bring out the "眼神" in each photograph.

That really mesmerized me and made me really stand there, looking at each picture.=) The photos featured different angles of each celebrity [not all them had multiple pictures though, most had just one picture featured] and really showed off his skill at capturing their present at that time. Many celebrities were featured, from Edison Chen [very cute] to Mika Nakashima, from Takeshi Kaneshiro to Faye Wong, from Zoe Tay to Anna Tsuchiya, there was a great mix of celebrities from all over Asia.

When I went, I was like 'sigh.. I should have brought someone with me' but resolutely went ahead to go alone anyway. On hindsight though, I'm glad I went alone because I could then really study each image on my own, in my own little bubble.^_^ It's like at art museums, it's nicer going around alone to admire each piece of art because that experience can be suggested to another person but can really only be experienced by yourself.

I was really happy to have gone.=)

Not least because... GACKT WAS FEATURED!!! *squeals madly* I was beaming to myself and tried to ignore this... bunch of teenage girls poking his picture.-_-" I decided to study the rest of the exhibition first to avoid being associated with erm. Them. Many people were attracted by Gackt's portrait actually because they were all wondering if the tattoos were real! Hahaha. Yes. I was totally eavesdropping.=P I really wanted to know if people even recognised him.

I stood in front of his portrait for the longest time, just staring at it. I could barely conceal my smile.=P My mother finally admitted that Gackt's eyes "很迷人" [are very mesmerising]. xD I couldn't agree more. He has this tender yet determined look in the photograph and you can feel the charisma that oozes from him. ^_^ I love that portrait. I was so sad that they didn't sell prints of these photographs.

Photography is not allowed at the exhibition but thanks to some sneaky camera skills, I managed to get a tons of photos of Gackt where I tried to position my camera sneakily but as steadily as possible.xD Beams.

I would love to post the pictures I took but it's not very legal so I'll just post a photo that I got online!:


The whole photo features his face, neck and part of his shoulder.=)

Actually, after leaving I began to think about what it is that keeps me interested in Gackt. Of course, his voice is a big draw here and the main reason I began liking him in the first place. But his charismatic [I can feel Jiamin snorting here] self and *coughs* fabulous good looks [his eyes!!! *_*!] serve to further give a face to match the voice thus making me like him more. And finally, his dramatic performances always keep me interested. His brains and dedication to his fans and learning more [his iPod is filled with language study tracks.O.o] though... Are really something that I admire.^_^

Perhaps if the museums would bring in interesting exhibitions like this one, I'd go more often.^_^

For dinner, we went to this seafood place near the Saddle Club. It's located in a very nice corner and churns out pretty good food.=)

Whew. What a wordy post.O.o I duely apologise but I was really happy after seeing Gackt.^_^
cheers
*[-witchstone-]*

[music : Shima Uta Gackt + FANTASY alice nine. + All I Ask of You + Music of the Night The Phantom of the Opera OST]
[mood : ^_^]
[food : prawns.=)]

Wendaye: What is Taiyou no Uta? [reminds me of Tsuki no uta.xD The Gackt song if you need a jolt. Haha.] O.o And I don't actually have the disc for this movie. I saw it on TV.^_^" Gomen.=X

Labels: edibles, exhibition, Gackt, musical review, National Museum, The Phantom of the Opera

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visions of clarity...do as infinity
by witchstone

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starry-eyed: filled with such youthful hope and optimism that one's eyes twinkle even when it's dark

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