M1 Singapore Fringe Festival

Motherland

Very Shy Gurl by fendy

Practice Space, The Theatre Practice
Jan 18, 8pm

Inspired by the 1993 Oslo Accords between Israel and the Palestine Liberation Organization, this creation by former Substation artistic director Noor Effendy Ibrahim – performed by his collective Very Shy Gurl by fendy – cannot avoid its contemporary resonance as Gaza continues to see bloodshed and longstanding conflicts threaten to envelop the Middle East. 

It is peak fringe festival fare, staged in the black box of The Theatre Practice’s Practice Space, which is claustrophobically dimmed and so spartan it resembles a jail cell.

Two male soldiers, in states of undress, circle each other and tussle lovingly, but mostly, violently. A wire mesh bed frame without a mattress is more torture device than a place of rest, while a phallic, elongated punching bag hangs overhead, the Damocles sword never allowed to drop.

Motherland was first presented as a work in progress at the Singapore International Festival Of Arts in May 2023, and its setting is intentionally not specific, though it is implied that actor Bada Jabari’s more aggressive soldier has invaded co-performer Irfan Kasban’s soldier’s land.

Both are unnamed – one of them, in fact, has forgotten the other’s name amid the conflict – and have developed a lustful and complicated romance that must necessarily reckon with the damaging psyche of war and the loss of loved ones outside.

It is initially confusing, tidbits of contextual information drip-fed to audiences over the one-hour showtime, at every turn filled with guilt, trauma, threat and domination. The lack of specificity means Effendy has to go big on the violence for audiences to feel it in the gut.

And he does so successfully, mostly via Bada’s menace and a flagellation scene that had some people repeatedly flinching. Here, Effendy makes a point about the ubiquity of videos available online from places of conflict that is increasingly forcing viewers to be helpless spectators.

A third actor, Mish’aal, is of interest, playing a man treated as a dog by, and so acting like a beast for, both men. He barks in exchange for water and serves as a useful scapegoat when tensions run too high.

Irfan’s character shows him some kindness, and he reciprocates with tenderness, but the tragedy is that in war, might is right, and he meekly facilitates the final heartbreaking act that smartly returns viewers to the beginning of the play – a loop of endless violence.

Rosemainy Buang’s live elegiac Javanese singing is integral to the otherworldly feel, and the whole act is experimental enough to shock and interest, though audiences seeking conventional meaning should look elsewhere.

A little abstract, but nevertheless a visceral, wholeheartedly acted performance by all involved.

Book It/Motherland (R18)

Where: Practice Space, The Theatre Practice, 54 Waterloo Street
When: Until Jan 20, 8pm
Admission: $28 (concession) and $35
Info: str.sg/AzCP