Rubber Girl on the loose (2019)

28 March 2019 – 31 March 2019 @ Theatre Studio, Esplanade – Theatres on the Bay

Synopsis

Urban legend has it that Sophocles, the Granddaddy of Tragedy, died from holding his breath while reciting a particularly long line from Antigone, the story of a young woman from Thebes, who had the cheek to defy her uncle-ruler Creon to bury her brother Polyneices. Receiving a proper burial was a big deal then. The deceased without an appropriate send-off would be denied entry into the Underworld and forced to roam the shores of River Styx as a restless ghost forever. Antigone wasn’t about to let that happen. Her refusal to snap under pressure earned her the nickname, Rubber Girl.

Rubber Girl is the proverbial rebel with a cause, a poster child for every generation, politicised by necessity to change her world.

With their penchant for subverting constructs, Cake sets Thebes in a hallucinatory institution under the rule of three (Creons). TriCreon skulks the hallway with the violent physicality of West Papuan dancer Darlane Litaay, builds walls of sound with the cavernous beats of Berlin-based musician Matthias Engler, and dictates to the administration with the exacting vowels, consonants and diphthongs of Malaysian actor Ghafir Akbar. In the airless school, Rubber Girl crumbles and rebounds with the angular athleticism of Australian dancer Sarah Chaffey. She embraces her nicotine-patched cousin-fiancé Haemon, speaks with the dead—including a bare-assed Polyneices—and wills us the courage to live life in accordance to our beliefs, without compromise, without hesitation, confronting fear, confronting death.

Personal beliefs clash with the powers above and what a big bloody mess that can be.

Concept & Direction: Natalie Hennedige
Text: Natalie Hennedige

Production Designer: Neon Tights x Mohd Fared Jainal
Lighting Designer: Suven Chan
Sound Composition: Philip Tan
Sound Designer: Kiat
Multimedia Designer: Brian Gothong Tan
Costume Designer: Aida Dolrahim 

Performers:
Sarah Chaffey
Amy J Cheng
Matthias Engler
Ghafir Akbar
Tia Andrea Guttensohn
Darlane Litaay
Andrew Marko
Masturah Oli
Mikaela Perez
Nicholas Tee
Al-Matin Yatim 
Jo Kukathas
Edith Podesta
Claire Teo

Photographer: Tuckys Photography

(Source: Cake Theatrical Productions Website)


credits

Natalie Hennedige
Director, Conceptualizer, Writer
Mohd Fared Jainal
Production Designer
Suven Chan
Lighting Designer
Philip Tan
Sound Composer
Kiat
Sound Designer
Brian Gothong Tan
Multimedia Designer
Aida Dolrahim
Costume Designer
Sarah Chaffey
Performer

artefacts

Rubber Girl on the loose (2019), Review
Rubber Girl on the loose The title Rubber Girl on the loose is a curious one. Who or what is a rubber girl? Can a person be made of rubber? What does it mean to have a rubber-like personality? This is my first encounter with a Cake Theatrics production, and I’m not sure what to expect based on the image conjured by the title. The Rubber Girl, performed by Sarah Chaffey, soon makes an appearance. She is Antigone, a young woman from Thebes who defies her uncle and ruler Creon’s law to bury her
Amanda Leong
Reviewed: 30 March 2019