Dance
Causes
Music
Chenloi
KL East Mall
2.00 pm - 2.30 pm
Stage One (G2)
This performance blends the elements of music, dance, tradition, modernity, and nature.
The beauty of nature is both real and surreal, offering a world where we can reconnect with Mother Nature—a bond that civilization has long since lost.
In this work, Malaysia’s unique indigenous instruments—the Pensol, or the nose flute of the Orang Asli Semai tribe in West Malaysia, and the Sape’ , a traditional lute of the Orang Ulu, mainly the Kenyah and Kayan tribes from Sarawak, East Malaysia—along with the accompanying dance, serve a deeper purpose. They act as tools for healing, soothing, and restoring the weary souls of living beings.
Lai Chee, the creator of this work, integrates her sensory body movements as a Malaysian Chinese woman living in a modern city. Following the sounds of the Pensol and Sape’, she strives to adapt herself to the ancestral melodies of the indigenous people.
Nature, in its untouched form, seems to provide the harmony and balance that so many of us seek, reminding us of the profound connection between the earth and the rhythm of life.
About the Artiste / Group
Raman Bin Bah Tuin
An indigenous of the Semai ethnicity. He is a Pensol musician living at the Orang Asli Village, Batu 11, Gombak, Selangor, Malaysia. He regularly performs at various cultural events and performances, most notably at the National Indigenous People Convention 2019 and Living Arts Festival 2019. Not only is Bah Raman knowledgeable about Semai craft and culture, he is skilled in making items such as wooden blowpipe, bamboo fish trap, kerchange game kit and flute from bamboo and tree barks.
Yeow Lai Chee
Lai Chee started performing in 2004 as a vocalist and dancer for the Malaysian musical production, Musical on Stage, and was part of Butoh dance company Nyoba Kan from 2009 to 2011. She learned Butoh Notation from Butoh Master Yukio Waguri (Tokyo) from 2009 to 2015. She has participated and performed in a series of Butoh performances in Malaysia and abroad including Thailand, China, Hong Kong and Macau. Lai Chee established her own Butoh company Soubi Sha in 2012 and produced a series of productions including Butoh Season 2013 & 2014 in collaboration with Japan Butoh dancers and Hijiakata Archive, Keio University, Reminiscence: The Strange Tales, and directed her own full-length Butoh performance The Dead Bird. She obtained her MA Cultural Management from Northumbria University in 2015 and is currently a full-time lecturer in Tunku Abdul Rahman University of Management and Technology.
Shawn Finian Wong
Hailing from Miri, Sarawak, Shawn has been learning the Sape’ since he was 14 and is now a seasoned Sape’ performer under the guidance of mentors Hallan Hashim and Garry Sudom. He has been actively performing the Sape’ since 2018. Recently, Shawn performed at the Borneo Jazz Festival in Miri, as well as at the A.S.L.I Campaign in Tunku Abdul Rahman University of Management and Technology. Shawn was crowned the champion of the BNF Sape’ Competition that was held at Central Market on 20th May 2023. Through his music, Shawn aims to create greater awareness and appreciation for this beautiful traditional instrument among his audiences.
