Tuesday, April 25, 2006
[]
[]
I'm posting illegally right now, because it's the exam period and while blogging during this period is legal for many others, my family is staunchly academic and cannot stand one nanosecond of relaxation during such a period when, yeah, you should be studying.
But how can I just neglect it? Especially when I'VE BEEN TAGGED BY not one, BUT TWO PEOPLE on the same "you've been tagged" quiz. Thanks a lot, Sherilyn and Min Ling.
Looking on the brighter side, it's the first time I'm doing quizzes the legal way (that is, I didn't steal from others' blogs, like I used to do).
So here we go.
Name 20 ppl you can think of right now at the top of yr head. Dont read the questions underneath until you write the names of all 20 ppl. ok tag at least 5 ppl..
Start!
1. Lin Fangying. (narcissist)
2. Wei Ning
3. Sherilyn
4. Aw Su
5. Min Ling
6. Nina
7. Dionne
8. Lisa
9. Clarice
10. Cinny
11. Cassandra
12. Wanzhen
13. Brother 1: Lin Jiahong
14. Brother 2: Lin Jiayu
15. Virtual Husband on The Sims 2: Dash McArthur
16. Virtual Son on The Sims 2: Law McArthur (don't ask why, my intuition wanted it)
17. Hui Ying (my cousin, not my classmate, Lee Hui Ying)
18. Li Ying
19. Eugene AKA Zhi Hao (PLEASE GAIN WEIGHT)
20. Xiao Jia AKA Zen (PLEASE BE SANE)
1.how did u meet 14?
I met him when I was in a crib 15 years ago in my old flat in Yishun, and he was looking down at me, smiling at me and saying, "Finally - a younger sister to bully!" Nah, that's not true - Made it up simply because I CAN'T REMEMBER. IT'S SUCH A GODDAMN LONG TIME AGO.
2.what would you do if u've never met 1?
Shit, would I even exist?!
3.what would u do if 20 and 9 dated?
Ouch. Kelly Poon Superfan and Skater Rocker? Hell, NO WAY! They won't even get together in the first place.
4.did u ever like 19?
Hey, we grew up together. What's not to like?
5.would 6 and 17 make a good couple?
NO. Friends, yes, couple, no.
6.Describe 3.
3 parts Burton + 2 parts Johnny Depp + a dash of literary swottiness = Sherilyn Lim Yan Ling
7.Do u think 8 is attractive?
Yes.
8.Tell me sth about 7.
Dionne loves to pinch our fries. And cokes. And sweets. And snacks. And Slurpies and Big Gulps and etc, etc, etc...
9.Do you know any of 12's family?
No.
10.What's 8's favourite?
Music. She's so musical, her life's literally made up of notes.
11. what would u do if 18 just confessed he/she likes you?
Hmm. We already liked each other. AS COUSINS!
12.what language does 15 speak?
Simlish.
13.Who is 9 going out with?
Nobody, as far as I know.
14.how old is 16 now?
7 Sim days.
15.When's the last time u talked to 13?
I don't know, we haven't talked for so long.
16.what is 2's favourite band/singer?
Koda Kumi.
17.would u ever date 4?
If we're both lesbians... why not.
18.would u ever date 7?
Same as 17.
19.Is 15 single?
No. He's MY VIRTUAL HUSBAND.
20.What is 10's last name?
Chin.
21.Would u ever be in a serious relationship with 11?
Seriously, no. Unless we both happen to be lesbians, of course.
22.What school does 3 go to?
Zhonghua Deaf And Dumb School? Zhonghua Monkey School? Zhonghua Night School? Ask Lee Moh Chun.
23.Where does 6 live?
Sengkang, pronounced in a very American accent.
24.What's yr fav thing about 5?
The "I-don't-give-a-damn" attitude.
25.Have u seen number 1 naked?
Every single day of my life since 14 January 1991.
Haha... and so, being out for so long, maybe I should describe what life for me is like now, since I'm so horribly bored and my parents just went out for a dental appointment.
On Sunday, I went to watch WEST SIDE STORY!! YAAAAAAAAAY!! And it was GREAT. So romantic, so violent, so passionate, so angsty, so happy, so sad, and most importantly, the musical conveyed a very strong message about social prejudices.
It's a modernisation of Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet, set in the 1950s' New York. It revolves around two feuding gangs, the Jets and the Puerto Rican Sharks, and two lovers, Tony and Maria, who belong to the Jets and the Sharks respectively. Tony is the co-founder of the Jets; Maria is the sister of Bernardo, the leader of the Puerto Rican Sharks. The story becomes complicated when Tony and Maria fall in love with each other at a gym dance that was held perhaps by the police to mediate the two gangs. Things become awful when Bernardo kills Riff, the leader of the Jets, and Tony kills Bernardo in revenge during a rumble. The Sharks get angry, and Chino, one of the Sharks, swore to kill Tony for Bernardo. Maria is sad that her brother is dead, but she cannot bring herself to hate Tony. Instead, she forgives him when he promised to turn himself in. In the end, anyway, Chino shoots Tony, and he dies in Maria's arms. I was nearly moved to tears by her tragic scream when Tony died. "NOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!"
Parallelisms between Romeo and Juliet and West Side Story (I can't help it)
1. Tony and Maria's meeting = the scene where Romeo and Juliet meets at the masquerade hosted by the Capulets
2. Bernardo = Tybalt, Juliet's cousin, and Riff = Mercutio, Romeo's friend
3. Bernardo kills Riff, and Tony kills Bernardo; In the original play, Tybalt, Mercutio and Romeo got into a swordfight and Romeo killed Tybalt for killing Mercutio.
4. The scene where Tony and Maria sang "Tonight" is the modernasation of the famous scene where Romeo, enchanted by the beauty of Juliet, climbs up to her balcony to meet her, and they part when Maria's nanny calls for her. In West Side Story, Tony climbs up Maria's balcony in the middle of the night to meet her, and they part when Maria's father calls for her.
5. Anita (Bernardo's girlfriend) was supposed to inform Tony about Chino's vow to revenge, but was harrassed and raped by the Jets outside Doc's shop (Doc is the equivalent of the Friar), and in rage she informs Doc and the Jets that Chino had killed Maria in anguish. When Tony heard the news from Doc, he was shattered, and ran out to the streets, calling for Chino to come out and kill him. Maria, still alive, appeared and ran towards him. As Tony rushed over, realising Maria was alive, but Chino appeared behind Maria with a gun, and shot Tony. Tony then bled to death in Maria's arms.
In Romeo and Juliet, Juliet feigned death to get Romeo to return from exile to her. Romeo rushed back to Verona after he heard the news, and in overwhelming sadness he killed himself, and died beside Juliet. Juliet then woke up from the antidote, saw Romeo's body, and stabbed herself to death.
Though there are differences (1. Romeo wasn't killed, he committed suicide; Maria didn't intentionally feign death, it was Anita who gave the Jets and Doc the wrong message; 3. Maria failed to kill herself after Tony died because she didn't know how to use a gun.), the idea is that the guy mistakenly thinks the girl is dead and decided to die.
6. In the end, everyone resolved their differences, and members from both gangs carried away Tony's body. In the end of Romeo and Juliet, The Montagues and the Capulets realised their mistakes which ultimately caused the untimely death of their children, and do not feud anymore.
For a start, I cannot promise all information is accurate, but hey, you're not studying this for Literature, right?
Let's analyse West Side Story:
Actors: Excellent Puerto Rican accent by the actors playing the Sharks. I don't think all of them are Hispanic, but their accent was quite real. The Jets were full of energy, very alive. The actors of Tony and Maria could portray the obsession they have with one another, and Tony was exactly what I thought he would be, romantic, idealistic, very much intoxicated by love after his meeting with Maria. And, hey, all of the Sharks and the Jets, I believe, looked below 35, very young for professional actors!
Songs and Singing: I simply love the songs. And the actors are good singers, but they don't blow me away, because their voices seemed rather overwhelmed by the orchestra. But then again, it's quite an accomplishment if you can sing against an orchestra. I can't even sing against a badly-tuned piano. Favourite song: "Tonight" and "Gee, Officer Krupke (pronounced Kruhp-kee)"
Sets: I like the idea of using two big wooden structures to represent places like Doc's shopfront, Anita's bridal shop and Maria's home. I didn't like the background to much... it looked unprofessional, just blur black-and-white computer images of a street.
Dance and choreography: Very energetic dancing, very nimble, though there was one scene, can't remember which one, I saw some of the actors panting... and that's a big no-no, to show that you've run out of energy. It's cruel, but that's theatre to you. The dances were well-chreographed, and portrayed the violence of the rumble well.
In other words, the best musical I've watched so far!
[fangying] [6:58 PM]
