ROCKE Leaders Interviews: Sien Long

By: Wang Liansheng

Photos: Sien Long

It was euphoria for all when the KE Float was awarded “Best Rag Performance” and “Most Environmentally-Friendly Float”. The entire hall was absolutely beaming with pride over such awesome accolades – something we had desired for so long, and finally achieved this year. Months after the hard work, KE Press now turns to the heroes behind the scenes to hear their secrets to success, and find out all the juicy gossip they have to share. For this article, we have Sien Long, from the RAG team.

Thumbs up for KEVII! Sien Long is first from the left.

Q: For our audience, introduce yourself briefly!

A: Hello, the name’s Sien Long, a typical year 2 Food Science & Technology (FST) student who enjoys eating, playing but not mugging =) On top of that, this insomniac loves running, music, milk, and good food. And one thing I’d want to clarify that is its Sien Long and not Hsien Loong, they might sound the same but totally different persons.

Q: So what was the special, critical role you took on in Float?

A: I was the production manager (PM) of this year’s KEVII Float – KEnovo. I believe the “critical” role in float is not mine but those of each and every KEnovo floater that formed this incredible team, but I do admit that the PM is a special role because you are one of the only 2 who can get the kick of directing the float lorry during Rag Day itself =D

Q: Share with us what you thought was the most outstanding part of Float this year.

A: The most amazing part of this year’s float is basically the tremendous effort of the people behind KEnovo who made this happen. Whether it is ROCKE or the new blood of KEVIIans this year, I would like to thank every form of support you all have given.

Apart from that, I want to give a thumbs up to all KEnovo floaters. We walked out of our comfort zone this year and went all the way with such a daring and impossible float design. We’ve been through times when all the odds were against us, from a lag of 2 weeks behind production schedule to even lorry battery failure. I still remember this quote of a senior, “everyday in the morning when I enter the tentage, I see a different float”. I’ve seen my team conjure up countless miracles which brought us back on schedule especially the construction of Willy himself during the final few weeks of production.

Introducing the workers behind the scenes

Q: Time to confess, what was the most unforgettable snippet of event that happened during Rag? Any person left an indelible mark in your life? =)

A: The most unforgettable moment for me and every single KEnovo floater is when we marched our float gloriously into SRC on mounting night with our KE Chant deafening all the other Halls and Faculties. I believe those who were present on mounting night itself will definitely remember that moment for a lifetime.

P.S. : And the number of McD Deliverys we had =p

Q: What words of wisdom would you offer those interested to take on the time-consuming yet extremely rewarding Float next year? Any suggestions for next year’s theme or design?

A: If you want it, go all the way! It is not just a time when you don’t have to worry about studies and commit fully to a hall CCA, not just the time that you are upfront on the battlefield for your hall, but also a time to enjoy and make many friends of a lifetime. But always remember, dare to dream and don’t constrain yourself to the traditions of KE7, be bold in your design and carry on that “New Beginning” that KEnovo has brought

Q: Was it tough juggling work and hall activities for you? How was it possible for you to overcome all these problems?

A: Not as tough as one could imagine, some activities towards the end of semester 2, but other than that all I had to manage was the home sickness throughout the holidays. Thanks to all the support of friends and family, I survived =D

Q: Describe the days of post-float – Is it all back to studies and no more fun?

A: Definitely NO =p Though everyone is back to the normal semester life, we still get together often for birthday celebrations and gossip around on the potential couples of KEnovo haha. But its still amazing when you walk around hall and realize that even after float, those comrades who went through all the hardship with you are still alive, kicking, and fighting on for our Hall.

Q: Lastly, what’s up for you in the days to come?

A: Studies… and my other family – XQRJ of course =)

“Float is not just an activity, It is a way of life!”

“Once a floater, always a floater!”

Sien Long

PM KEnovo

Indeed, Sien Long has provided rare insights not only on being the Production Manager of KEnovo, but also several very interesting snippets on being a resident in KEVII. Now, who’s up for the job next year?

Internal Culture Night 2009

By: Akhilesh Narayan

Photos: Cao Ying and Zhou Shuo

Nine cultural groups, one night and an escape into the world of diverse cultures present in King Edward VII Hall. The 22^nd of October 2009 was a night filled with a variety of dances and songs, a drama, a movie and a very gripping display of martial arts, all of which gave shape to KE’s Internal Cultural Night. The emcees for the night were Asher and Lisa, who had a small skit of their own before every performance. They did not allow the audience to feel dull at any moment, while the stage crew propped the stage up for the next cultural group. The night was inaugurated by F Block Resident Fellow, Dr. Seow Teck Keong who announced to the audience that there was something extra special about this particular ICN.

There was a small opening ceremony which consisted of dancers, colourful curtains and very sensual and soothing music. It was just the right thing to calm everyone down before the burst of energy that would grip the entire Hall in the next few hours. And just as the calm music subsided and the dancers faded away, the KE Titans burst into the Comm Hall from what seemed to be literally every entrance. The cheerleaders in red and black brought along with them a thunderous applause and an immense amount of KE spirit as they charged towards the front of the Hall. This was the first ever performance by the KE Titans (Cheerleading Squad of KE) and boy, did they lift everyone’s spirits.

The opening ceremony dance

Go Titans!

This was followed by five songs that were composed by KEVIIANs themselves from Xinyao. The first song ‘Broken’ was in English, while the others ‘Shi Shu’, ‘Que Shui De Xln Qing’, ‘Zui Ling ‘Long’ and You ‘Zi Yin’ were in Chinese. Xinyao’s performance contained a variety of music ranging from archaic tunes to modern ones. Their compositions were very delicate and contained a lot of heart in them. This was followed by a tale of love in the form of some very different dancing styles in the first dance performance titled ‘Love Affair’. There were graceful and elegant moves happening on stage, behind stage and along the sides of the stage in this performance and they all received deafening appreciation from the audience.

A Love Affair

Beautiful singing...

The next performance was by Chinese Drama- ‘An Unexpected Valentine’s Day’. How bad can your Valentine’s Day be? Well the answer to that was provided by the very simple yet deep play. The protagonist gets thrown out of a bus because he gives up his seat to an apparently pregnant lady, he nearly gets beaten up by a hooligan for trying to look after the hooligan’s bicycle, he loses his girlfriend when he runs behind a woman to get his money back and he gets yelled at by a mother when he tries to lift a little girl’s (Dr. Seow Teck Keong’s daughter) spirits. Pretty bad, right? But the silver lining for the protagonist was when then little girl came running back and gave him her balloon. A small gesture of gratefulness can mean a lot. That was the moral of this story.

I want my money back...

Go Andy!

A Cappella has always given a very tranquil and blissful performance. There are no fancy gimmicks, just good old fashion beautiful music. They performed two songs which were very contrasting in nature showing the versatility of the group. ‘If’ and ‘Fire’, the two performances, displayed how music can in fact change the entire mood of a place. The most mesmerising fact about their performance was that they made it look effortless. Pop music has always been very peppy and dance inducing. The audience snapped their fingers and tapped their feet along with the dancers in their second performance of the night titled, ‘Those Pop Songs’. There was a praiseworthy moonwalk from either side of the stage that looked perfect. There was again a lot of energy in the dancers as they danced to these old, but popular numbers.

The harmonious voices of A Cappella

Fire indeed!

Looking good!

A short break for light refreshments and then we had the lucky draw prize winners announced. Then the KE band was welcomed with a thunderous applause. Six songs later the crowd was left begging for more. ‘Free Loop’, ‘Careless Whisper’ (by Seether), ‘Paralyser’, ‘Geek in the Pink’, ‘September’ and ‘Don’t Look Back in Anger’ was the selection the band went with to turn the Comm Hall into a concert ground. There were mobile phones being raised in the air, people singing along and a lot of cheering, solos on the drums and guitar and loud rock music in everyone’s ears. There were no drugs and no sex, but the band rocked and rolled their way into the night.

Craig singing Careless Whisper

Look at him go...

The hooting after the band’s performance subsided, as the lights went off and the theme of Mission Impossible paved the way for ELnD’s movie ‘Camp KE’. The recession, Jack Sparrow, Super-man and Harry Potter brought themselves onto the screen along with NS. This was supposed to be an intense comedy, but due to the lack of subtitles, many of the funnier parts remained unnoticed. Despite this there was a roar of laughter from the audience when Gavin’s ahem… ‘R-rated’ scene came. Wonder what was so funny about that?

The third dance performance called ‘Haunting Dreams’ was a very unique one. As the name suggests, it had a very eerie feel to it. The music, the dancers, the costumes and the lighting all contributed to the effect of the song. The abstractness in this dance contrasted with the next dance performance called ‘Crazy Little Thing’. There were hats, girls in colourful clothes, guys in white shirts and jeans, glitter, light and a lot of colour that highlighted the excellence of the dancers. It was a fitting finale to the DansDemonz performance.

Haunting everyone's dreams...

Woah, so much colour!

Men in black and women in white, but the music was perfected to a point beyond perfection. The KE Choir sung three songs- ‘Solerum’, ‘Lux Aurumque’ and ‘Pasigin’. While the first two songs were slow and soothing, the third was full of life and jumpy. There were a number of loud cheers from the audience, as the choir got ready to perform.

The KE Choir!

The final performance for ICN 2009 was by Wushu. The Wushu team put up a very well choreographed display of the martial art. The thunderous beats in the background, the war cries, the clanging of swords, the acrobatics of the Wushu team, the different coloured costumes, all lead to one ultimate thing- the end of KE’s ICN. The fight which involved the girl in a purple costume and a hat definitely stole the show.

Is he flying?

Thus, ICN 2009 came to an end. It was a month of hard work put in by all the cultural groups, no doubt, but many people tend to ignore the enormous amount of work put in by the people behind the curtains. The people handling the lights, the sounds, the stage, the decorations, the marketing, the publicity and the logistics would have spent many sleepless nights trying to co-ordinate with the different culture groups. The Culture Comm did a splendid job in making ICN a success and they deserve a huge round of applause…

The Cultural Group Heads

Good job Culture Comm!

Gavin and Priscillia!

After Dusk Party

Editor: Pearly Neo

Editor’s Note: Two writers were dispatched to the ADP, in hopes of obtaining two different points of view (hopefully one who would feel overwhelming fear, and another who wouldn’t)…but it appears that the ADP was indeed a smashing success, as both writers (both big strong guys, I might add. XD) have admitted to feeling fear to some degree! Good work on the ADP GH folk! Hope everyone enjoys reading the articles!

The After-Dusk Party (Writer 1’s POV)

By: Wang Liansheng

In short, the ADP was bloody good. Who would have thought that an event purely managed by the GH Block Comm would garner such a large turnout?

To be honest, when I first heard about the After-Dusk Party, there were reservations about it. For one, being the ever cynic that I am (and I assume many others were), I was wondering if this would degenerate into one-super-lame event meant only for the blockers.

I was wrong.

The event was executed to a pretty large scale. Prior to the event, facebook videos publicizing the event caught my attention. They were short, yet successfully sent chills down my spine every time I watched them. Suddenly, I had friends who asked me about the event, and even friends from my faculty (which resides in a faraway island known as the BTC) wanted to come down in support of the event. During the event, there would be a band performing, themed food and drinks available, and of course the main attraction of the night – A Haunted House. The stairway leading up to the Haunted House was not spared too – It was decorated with cut-outs of bats, ‘Blood’ was splattered on the floor, and it was gruesome.

Was I missing something here? What had been promised in the After-Dusk Party that was so enticing?

So I took up the challenge, and volunteered myself to cover the event.

Sadly, the start of the night was slow. The turn out was slightly dismal, and I wasn’t particularly interested to cover the event. I thought, “Maybe all the effort isn’t paying off.” Only a few turned up around 7.30pm, and they seemed to be supporting friends, rather than genuinely interested in the party.

I left disappointed, and came back around 9pm after meeting up with a couple of friends. I had decided to give the party another chance.

And indeed, it was a risk well taken.

9pm was the time when dusk finally came, and the night became grotesquely dark. It was a signal for the party to REALLY begin.

The queue now at the Communal Hall where it has been transformed into a Haunted House was long. Everyone was in their groups, chit-chatting prior to entering the Haunted House. It had become a social event where people were excited about the event, and discussing about it with much anticipation.

Finally it was time for the writer to enter the Haunted House (thanks to GH Block Comm for the lovely complimentary ticket!). Somewhat, I was glad I had a friend with me because I was genuinely afraid the first instance I stepped into the Communal Hall.

We were first led into the hall by a freakishly scary patient. (Kudos to Yu Wei for being in character, haha!)

Prior to entering the maze, we were treated to snippets of horror movies, and the shrill screams of many others who had entered the maze. For a moment, it was scary because the entire atmosphere had set the game for the night.

Then we entered the maze. It was walking through sections of stations where a different story unfolded before us. There was a psycho doctor with an eyeball, cadavers lying on tables, a pregnant lady with another sicko doctor, two small children in a living room, and many more.In between sections, there were crazily narrow walkways with black cloth draped on two sides. I have to say: I really had apprehensions walking through.

Featuring a few 'friends' of the After Dusk Party...

To be honest (and maintaining that male ego) I wasn’t pretty much petrified until the children part where in the midst of leaving that section of the communal hall, someone grabbed my leg from beneath. There was an instant shock and fear perpetuating through. Once again, kudos to whoever that was – A classic yet timeless scaring technique.

Before we left the communal hall, we were made to search through photographs of a woman with her face punched in. The photos were… not particularly good for your appetite.

Finally, we left the Communal Hall in the midst of all the screaming (either from participants or the Block Comm-ers themselves) and decided to walk down to the Meeting Room for some refreshments to calm ourselves down.

The meeting room was not spared in adapting to the theme too – Paper cut-outs of bats were hanging from the ceiling, the dishes were named and created appropriately to suit the theme. It was definitely an event well planned – and achieved much success in injecting life into a dark, solemn Friday night.

Looks like the guests of the Haunted Mansion aren't that afraid of the ghosts lurking around! Bet they had an awesome time too!

The After Dusk Party is a new experiment that achieved its spark of brilliance in some instances. For a cynic who professes to be one brave soul, it has been one hell of a ride – and an interesting twist to an otherwise boring Friday night. I eagerly anticipate a bigger and scarier After Dusk Party next year!

The After-Dusk Party (Writer 2’s POV)

By: Jason Lun Leung

Over the past few weeks, everyone’s anticipation of the After Dusk Party had been steadily growing, and finally, 16^th October arrived.

It all started quite well, with the steps leading to the Comm. Hall being smeared with blood marks and lined up with bats. The waiting area in front was darkened and glowing ominously. The crowd that had gathered in front of the entrance was quite eclectic. No doubt helped by the ambiance created, they were chatting nervously: some were already having second thoughts about going in, while others were just encouraging themselves and bragging how they would need a lot more than that to be scared. As they were ushered in in pairs, the After Dusk Party started with the tour of the Haunted Hospital.

Before going in the tour proper, you were made to wait and watch some horror clips. These few minutes really got people in the right frame of mind, especially with the screams from those who had already gone in being heard loud and clear and the hanging body you could see dangling from the ceiling. When the moment came, you got called in, and then, after bracing yourselves, you took a deep breath and stepped into the dark labyrinth.

The ghosts all ready to go out and do some proper scaring...But what could be behind that cloth?...

The whole tour was quite eerie. The black drapes were perfect for people to jump and grab you, and when that did not happen, you were still scared, because you could never be sure what was lying in wait on the other side. At some point, you just did not know what to do anymore. Scared by the corpse area, you just rushed through, thinking that being done with it as fast as possible might be a good idea… only to get so terrified by the next walking zombie that you just could not move forward any more. Brrr…

Like all good events, this one was a compelling act that took all of your attention while it lasted, and then left you wanting more. You just went through the pregnant woman scene, the mirror scene, the tunnel and all the other creepy areas, before ending up looking for the picture of a dead body. At the end of the tour, you had already been so impressed that you were half expecting them to have something left for you. I remember going through the door at the back of the Comm. Hall checking if there was somebody waiting to pounce on me as I stepped out, and then chuckling nervously when I realised that it was truly over.

What else would it be, but even more of them!

By that time, you were so caught up discussing how your tour had been with the others that you had already forgotten that the GH Block Comm actually had more in store: the food and the band. And this was no minor feat either. They had been meticulous enough to come up with witch fingers, RIP sandwiches and other dishes suited up for this night of mayhem.

The band was performing at the BBQ pit area, covering Metallica, Evanescence and Michael Jackson, to the delight of everyone there. The events of the night all made perfect conversation starters and with this, concluded a marvellous night for everyone who had come down.

After Dusk Party was successful in bringing down people for a night of scares and giving them good memories that they will be talking about for weeks on. Congratulations to the GH Block Comm, who came up with a new idea and successfully put up this show which broke away from the routine of usual hall events and was, overall, very entertaining. It was a welcome change and the organisation was really good. Good job!

ROCKE Leaders Interviews: Xiao Shuang

By: Akhilesh Narayan
Photos: Xiao Shuang

KE’s spectacular, whimsical, sea-faring float, made an absolute splash at Rag Day 2009, plunging into victory, with the ‘Best Overall Float’ prize, an honour that King Edward VII Hall has not had for years. Behind this bedazzling work of genius, however, was an unforgettable experience for many, a summer of infinite memories, a treasure chest of burdens and hopes. Here to tell us the story is the little bundle of energy and enthusiasm, who managed the finances for KE’s Whale- Xiao Shuang, Treasurer and Operations Manager of ROCKE’s Float Committee for 2009.

The wording on the picture says it all.

Congrats on being treasurer and Operations Manager for KE7’s best float! What was special about KE’s float this year?

This year, our float adopted a different concept from our past floats. Our main concept was to have a main float, which have always been Kent Ridge’s and Sheares’ trademark, instead of the concept of having a montage float. Apparently it did the trick =)

That could very well be the secret behind our success. KE also won most environmentally friendly float. How did you make this possible?

Our team had gone all out to source for any and every creative material that they could lay their hands on. This included electrical appliances such as electric irons, telephones, electric kettles and also kitchen utensils such as butter beaters. The judges were especially impressed by our ‘Iron’ fish =)

Cheers on the day!

Describe life in the post-Rag euphoria.

Life goes on, apparently. But one day, long after Rag is over, you will suddenly think of it and smile and say to yourself, “I’m glad that I joined and experienced one of the most meaningful activities in my life!”

Tell us about your experience as a member of the Float Committee last summer.

My experience is quite different from others. I am more involved in the admin side. I was responsible for liaising with the Hall management, other ROCKE members, companies (sponsors) and NUSSU.

What was your role as a treasurer, exactly?

Well, it was just normal stuff that a treasurer does. Plan a budget and keep an eye on it among other things. One additional thing I had to do was to hand in the financial statements to NUSSU towards the end period, when things were getting physical and mentally draining!

Describe a typical day of Float-work over the summer.

Wake up → switch on your computer → start work =)

Dedicated hard workers feeling tired...(L: Xiao Shuang, R: Sien Long)

 

Describe one special memory of your work in Float Comm?

A very special bonding session was when we cut and processed almost all the cans we got from Mega Metal (weighs up to 47 KG!!) in two consecutive nights. We chit chatted along the way and it was truly an unforgettable experience to me.

Describe one point when you and the Float Comm felt slightly down or bugged with the progress on the float.

There was one point of time when we had a miscommunication problem and were pushed to the brink of collapse. Luckily everyone sat down, discussed and probed every possibility that could be done to overcome the crisis. The crisis, in fact helped to bond our team even more!

Ok! Tell us one funny/ interesting thing about each of the other main committee members from float! (Please!!)

• Vincent likes to play with the kitten in Comm Hall.
• Sien Long cannot survive without milk.
• Zhi Peng was forced to wear one of the ‘sexy’ costumes =) (Zhi Peng, im soooo sorry!)
• Anthony likes to order large coke from Mcdonalds
• Xiao Han also likes to drink milk
• Wen Hao is another big fan of Coke.
• Sharlene is always painting =)

 

Finally, congrats on been selected to JCRC this year! What are your hopes and plans for our Hall (and possibly float) in the coming year?

Since we are a bit tight on our budget this year, I hope that all of us can work together and try to cut down unnecessary expenses so that we can still achieve what we intend to achieve when we made our plans for hall’s CCAs.

 

—

And those were the parting words of our Financial Secretary (she’s perfect for the post, I feel). This has been a wonderful way for all of us to gain a sneak peek into the world of our Float Comm. While many of us went back home, they stayed on and built for King Edward VII Hall a beacon of pride…

python in KE7! (10th October 2009)

photos by: Deborah Wong

At 230am on a Saturday morning, our hall had a surprise visitor…

a python!

say hi! xD

some KEVIIans who were there!

close-up shot

Master searching yellow pages for private pest control companies...

pest control guys at work!

capturing the snake by its neck!

huge, ain't it? and into the sack it goes!

east wing mid autumn festival! :)

Writer: Ong Qing Liang
Photos: Deborah Wong, Gopal Kumar

On an uneventful Sunday night in hall, when on return from a 57-second long toilet break, I noticed that a door tag had been swiftly pasted during my brief period of absence:

the myserious doortag which appeared out of nowhere

Looking at the note, a strange sense of excitement overcame me. It felt as if I was being transported back to the era when the humble mooncake had its beginnings, the Yuan dynasty. Back then, China was under the rule of the Mongolians and rebel leaders, in a bid to devoid themselves of any suspicion, carefully distributed special cakes with secret notes embedded in them, spreading word of an impending rebellion. This time round though, the door tag given to me was not to signal a brewing upheaval in KE VII Hall, but rather, a friendly invitation to the East Wing Mid Autumn Festival.

And so on Wednesday night, the mundane BBQ area was magically transformed into a grand celestial palace. With colourful lanterns of various shapes and sizes hung all around and the quiet, peaceful moon beaming overhead, the atmosphere was perfect.

from this.....

 

to this!

Well, some say that in the past, Chang Er was recruited as a celebrity endorsement for an unnamed slimming center and in order to maintain her 10-inch waistline, she embarked on a strict no-fat, no-mooncake diet (thus earning her the nickname 常饿, or “often hungry” ) Eventually though, Chang Er became so thin and malnourished that one day, gravity was unable to hold on to her bony frame anymore and she floated off to the nearest celestial body, where she now spends her days playing with the resident rabbit and watching the next door neighbour’s futile attempts at chopping down a tree.

the legend of chang er

Well, if the Chang Er in the story above was around during the East Wing MAF, she definitely would not be able to resist the sumptuous spread available for the night. Besides the customary festival goodies such as mooncake and pomelo, there was a wide variety of other treats available for every hungry East Winger.

yummy mooncakes

 

more food!

The spirits of everyone were kept high throughout the night with many fun and creative games. The physical fitness of East Wingers was put to the test as they ran against each other in a light-the-sparkler relay (well, actually the physically demanding part was not the spinning and running, but rather trying to breathe under the dense, cough-inducing sparkler smoke) while their mental power was tested in the “lantern riddles” and “guess-the-song” segments. For some East Wing residents, it was their first time experiencing the Mid Autumn Festival. Vibol, from AB block, particularly liked the chewy texture of the mooncake and commented that it was literally ‘out of this world’ (pun intended).

racking their brains over the riddles

 

passing on the spark

 

can u guess the song?

 

ms chang er pageant?

 

we love east wing!

As the candles and sparklers started to die down, the celebrations came to an end. Satisfied East Wingers reluctantly left for their rooms knowing that while the flames of the lighted lanterns may have extinguished, the East Wing spirit continues to burn strong in each and every one of them!

ROCKE Leaders Interviews: Vincent

 By: Avik Sarkar
Editor: Janice Fan
Photos: Jessica Lau, Grace Chan, Ngyuen Kahn An

8^th of August 2009 was the day which went down in history as KE was honored with not only the Most Environmentally Friendly Float Award , but also the Best Overall Float Performance Award – an honor which has tantalizingly evaded KE for the past fifteen years. Behind the stunning show lay the countless days and nights of selfless sacrifices and team work. From the deep waters of hard work and commitment of this year’s Float Committee, a magnificent float arose- KENOVO!

So, here we are with the one person whose vision, perception and leadership added yet another feather in KE’s cap. Yes, my fellow KEVIIans, it is none other than the head of ROCKE’s Float Committee 2009. In a candid chat with me, this key person bares his soul about Float 2009…

Presenting… VINCENT LIM!

Vincent & Sien Long, with the two awards!

Congrats on the achievement of the float committee 2009. How do you feel about the success?

 Like I’m not truly a part of it. I have always believed that the members who put together the float are the rightful owners of the float and not the head. I could only share their joy of creating a masterpiece from scratch. However as their head, I could not have been prouder to be able to form and lead this team to victory 

 

What was the experience of leading the float committee 2009 like?

It is probably the slackest and most stressful post in the entire committee. Slackest because all you need to do is look through the paperwork done by others, attend meetings chaired by others as well as giving instructions to others. Most stressful because you’ll have to appear to be the slackest despite all the deadlines, screw ups, complains, dissatisfactions as well as misunderstandings directed at you.

  

How do you feel now, looking back at those grueling float practice sessions during the summers?Do you mean the rehearsals/dry runs and dance sessions or do you mean the production of the float as a whole? If you mean the rehearsals and dance practices, I’m probably very relieved because every sessions, I’ll have a surprise and usually not in a good way. If you meant the entire production, then I would say, I missed it quite a lot, I’ve never been on Facebook so frequent in my entire life.  Also the fact that being surrounded by friends who are working towards a common goal everyday adds to the entire float experience.

 

How did you feel when you walked up the aisle to receive the awards?Honestly, I was rather puzzled initially. After going through 3 floats, I was rather sure of the  scoring system for Rag Day. Since Eusoff Hall have won the Best Performance as well as the Best Design, which constitutes a large percentage of the overall scores, we were rather skeptical of being able to win the best overall float. Furthermore, the announcer called the award Best Float Performance for the Day, which I thought already went to Eusoff. Therefore I wasn’t too sure of the award we won until I read the title of the award on the Shield.

 

Vincent and an overjoyed crowd! (when the results were announced during Rag Day)

 

a close-up of Vincent

 What is the one thing you would like to change about KE float 2009, given the rare chance of time travel?

Why would I change anything? We did win the best overall performance right? I’m sure there are parts of the float that could be improved on to win the other awards as well but what happens if in the midst of trying to improve a certain aspect of the float, we forgo some other important aspect which cost us the ultimate award.

 

Tell us about one moment you hated the most and one moment you cherished the most during your term in office as the float head 2009…

I probably hated the times we have the weekly general meetings the most. Reason being nobody actually listens to what was being said especially during the later period where everybody is shagged out. But the meeting is still necessary for those who actually listens to update themselves on our progress. I’ll also cherish the moment the general meetings the most not because the meeting’s finally over but because we’ll have our float cheer at the end of the meetings where you get to see everyone re-energized.

 

Did you think we had a high chance of winning before the “big day” arrived and why did you think so?

I’ve never once believed that it was by any chance that we won. Since the design was finalized and all the members started on the float, we’ve already won. There were times when the team was demoralized and we were far behind schedule. I did get worried during these few periods. However, the team managed to pull through and proved that my worries are groundless.

 

KENOVO is a brilliant idea and an apt answer to NUSSU’s Rag theme 2009…How did the idea come about? Tell us also how it was developed into its final magnificence…

To be honest, I’m rather clueless on how KENOVO actually came about. As mentioned, I just put the team together and World War III didn’t start between the departments. A better person to ask would be our Chief Designer, Anthony. However, if you want to know how such a wonderful team is formed, I could share that with you though it might be rather boring for this interview.

 

Finally, perhaps a few words of encouragement for the upcoming Float Committee 201o?

I really hope there’s no need for any words of encouragement as that would mean they’ve hit a wall and are demoralized. Why else should they need any encouragement? Here’s a few words of advice though: Float is all about believing in what you do. As long as you believe your float is the winning float, it will be just that; the winning float.

 

Last but not the least, congrats on being selected to be part of the JCRC again. As the sport secretary, what are your plans for our hall’s sports in the coming year?

If this is to be put into the year book, it’ll probably be too late to know about my plans. On the other hand, if this is to be up in the hall blog, why would I share my plans with the other halls? What I can say is I foresee a rising KEVII in the sporting front. 

Thank you for your time and a wonderful interview! All the very best in your future endeavors

ROCKE Leaders Interviews: Louis

By: Jason Lun Leung

Photos: Louis Lim

Louis with his big killer smile...

First of all, why KEWOC?

I was in KEWOC the year before, as a publicity member, and I had thoroughly enjoyed it. I love getting in touch with the freshmen and serving them. I especially think of the foreigners who come to Singapore for their studies and are still disorientated. KEWOC gives me the opportunity to make their crucial first few days here more enjoyable, and less of a hassle.

This actually does not need to consist of any grand actions, and one of the best memories I have is of the freshmen coming to say how much they appreciated KEWOC members being there to help with moving their luggage. This quite simple gesture is a perfect illustration of how KEWOC allows me to help the freshmen in a way that is truly fulfilling.

KEWOC is a very fun committee to join. The activities and games were all a real pleasure, and, for this, my entire crew must take credit. They really did a great job. =D

Another thing I find interesting is how those crucial first days in hall can shape the freshmen’s whole hall stay, and, as KEWOC, I get to influence those to a great extent. With school and the heavy workload, students can get in a routine very easily, so, orientation is one of those rare periods when they are truly open-minded and free enough to make friends.

How did you get to this year’s theme? What was your inspiration?

Voyage. Ken Juin, my programmes head, and I came up with this idea. It does sound a bit cliché, but it truly is a fact of life. It suits the orientation time so well, in so many different ways. This is a way of acknowledging how, at this point in time, KE has the occasion to be an impactful moment for great change in the freshmen’s life. As freshmen, we all have had very different paths, and we will most probably go very different ways in the future also. Yet, at this precise moment, our roads crossed in this KEVII hall, and the KEWOC team was there to make sure that this convergence was fun as much as it is meaningful.

A plus point was that voyage was in line with this year’s float theme. Flag also joined in and this is how this year, the major committees got to have ship-related logos. Nice bonus.

How do you feel about the whole KEWOC experience, now that it is over?

I would have to concede it is a mixed feeling. One part of me heaves a long sigh of relief. KEWOC is really draining some times, and I do feel happy that it all finished without any major problems. The other part of me still longs for the times that I had with our people: laughing at each other, doing silly things, getting high at not sleeping! J Ultimately, my heartfelt thanks must go to my committee people, whom without them, this year’s orientation will not come into existence.

...and another one...

Could you share some of the difficulties encountered with us?

Without doubt, the red tape is the major hassle. Getting all our plans approved by OSA, OSHE and SCRC was very difficult. They have lots of guidelines and rules that people would not really imagine, and complying with all of them is quite a feat. But thankfully, after revisions and reviews, we managed to pull it off, ensuring that there are no ragging elements in the orientation.

The scheduling was quite problematic also, with this year’s orientation clashing with the matriculation fairs. On top of that, because our programme is not compulsory, which leaves us dependent on the freshmen being willing to join in of their own free will. This is quite stressful, but then, when they do come in numbers, it really is a great joy and victory for us KEWOC people.

Describe one moment that stands out during the pre- orientation week period.

The dry runs for all the games! Not only are the games themselves very fun but this is also when we get to bond as a team and learn more about each other. Thinking back about it, it’s amazing how far we have come, from those first days when it was still a little awkward to the end when we were all having fun.

Describe one such moment during the orientation week itself.

I was extremely pleased when I saw the freshmen cheer so enthusiastically among their tribes. Up to that point, KEWOC is mostly about planning and advance work. Orientation week is when we get to know how productive our efforts have been. As such, the cheers are tangible proof that our work has achieved its goal.

Ultimately, KEWOC aims to make the freshmen acculturated into KE, develop a strong hall sense and make friends with all those new people they meet. When I saw the freshmen being so enthusiastic, I really felt proud and happy. It truly makes you forget the difficulties you have been through to get to this point.

Tell us about one memorable moment from post orientation week.

Obviously, post orientation week, I was just relieved that all was over. By that time, I was very tired and had to settle my sleep debts. But one thing I remember fondly is seeing how people miss KEWOC. Here, I am talking about how the committee members will still go to the KEWOC room. It’s something we do not usually realise, but KEWOC does grow on us, and when it’s all over, we miss it. After spending so much time together planning and discussing in that room over those many weeks, we do bond together as a team, which is why we have this ‘something-is-missing’ feeling in the first days after it ends.

But aside from that, we also have to move on. And for KEWOC, that means helping float and flag people, who by then, are steadying themselves for their critical phase. I am extremely glad that this year’s ROCKE committee have done such a good job!

One thing you would do differently, if you were given the chance.

I think I would recruit more girls. Having too many guys is not good for the group dynamics. Haha.

...and whaddaya know? There's another one! =D

Do you have any advice to give to the next committee?

More girls. Haha.

But seriously, KEWOC is a very fulfilling job. Like most of those, it is very taxing at times, but the rewards are seriously worth it. While the completion of task is important, the welfare of people is of higher priority. Care for people and show them you sincerely value them. Learn to love your people. They will love you back. This is something that I have learnt. =D

Mid Autumn Festival A la Dim Sum

Writer: Adrian Chia
Photos by:  Kelvin Anggara

To talk about dim sum during Mid-Autumn Festival is like to talk about scoring goals in tennis. While in tennis you score aces instead of goals, you hardly hear people mentioning ‘dim sum’ in the same breath as ‘Mid-Autumn Festival’. Instead, mooncake, lanterns and the big round moon should be the main features of the festival. But this year, the Mid-Autumn Festival was truly about dim sum. Wait a second, did I just put the two terms in the same sentence? No mistake there, because this year’s celebration was really in essence, a Dim-Sum event.

At about 7pm, a group of people claiming to be the leaders of the Dim Sum clan assembled at the E4 kitchenette. After a short discussion, they started getting themselves busy with baking powder, flour, eggs, chicken wings, char siew sauce and the oven. It took a while before it became apparent they were not making xiao long baos, chee cheong funs or siew mais. They were actually preparing supper for their dearest Dim Sum clan members!

As dark clouds thickened overhead and the clock struck nine, the Dim Sums began to converge in the Communal Hall. To prevent the Dim Sums from turning cold, some energizers were played to break the ice. Scenes of them sticking stinky feet at one another, greeting each other in a silly sissy manner and rubbing their noses on particular red shirts were observed. Perhaps a secret art for preparing the delicacies?

Sticking their feet together

Silly and sissy greetings

How to greet another person in Christmas Island

Supper was served after that. On the menu were chicken wings and barley drink. Conspicuously absent were traditional items like mooncakes and Chinese tea. For those interested, check out this website which briefly tells the stories of Mid-Autumn Festival and why mooncakes are significantly special on this occasion!

Barley and chicken wings

The next phase of operation involved a route march from KEVII Hall to the SRC Field, with everyone carrying a standard gear of a paper lantern. To add to the tactical difficulty, the full moon was too shy to be seen as it was shrouded in thick, dark clouds. Along the way, there was much chatter and singing, and pit stops were made to replenish ammunition – in the form of candles, as well as to get into formation to be exposed to the flashlights of the camera from time to time. At the field, much to the disappointment of the group, the moon still failed to show up, but solace was sought in the form of chats, songs and cookies. One particular cookie was noteworthy for its its mutated size and shape, for it looked more like an oversized pizza! On the return trip, more lanterns were reduced to ashes after lighting up in fireballs.

Equipped with the lanterns

Marching towards SRC

Pit stop

All smiles =D

Upon reaching back in hall, there was one last surprise in store – a belated birthday celebration for Cui Shan. Amusingly, all the matches were used up during the road march that none were left to light the birthday candles! Nonetheless the frozen cheese cake more than made up for the minor blip!

And then the Dim Sums went to bed.

Wishing everyone a belated 中秋节快乐! (Happy Mid-Autumn Festival!) =D

Malaysia Night 2009

Writer: Pearly Neo
Photos: Kelvin Anggara

Pearly: First of all, I’d like to apologise to all readers for the SUPER late posting of this article. There was a major technical problem while I was uploading the photos, and I thought I’d hold off on posting the article entirely until I could fix it…but I still can’t so the photos are without captions. I really am very very sorry, and I hope you all enjoy reading this, late though it be! Will post more photos, and fix up the remaining ones as soon as I figure out how to fix the problem!

As part of the organizing committee for Malaysia Night 2009, I’m sorry to say I may just be a leeetttle bit biased when writing this article. After all, when you’re there first-hand to witness how weeks of sleepless nights, endless rehearsals, meticulous planning and various diseases (yes, diseases!) boil down to this one special night, it’s more than a little difficult to not feel proud of it. I was, unfortunately, unable to actually watch Malaysia Night, having had to be onstage throughout almost the entire production, but what I can write about here is the thrilling experience of being part of the event. So here goes…  

Saturday, 12 September 2009

5.30pm After a full day of rehearsing and practicing, everyone was caught up in a frenzy of excitement when it was suddenly heard from somewhere outside that ‘There are GUESTS arriving! Guests!’, upon which we all hastened to get ready in double time. I personally hadn’t really felt that much of nerves up until that point, but when I was finally dressed up in my cheongsam (for emcee-ing) and was looking around watching everyone else get their make-up done, it finally hit me: IT’S TIME. Gulp.

6.00pm The crowd truly arrived in full force (Later, we found out that we actually sold 180+ tickets, more than our initial target of 160. Yay!), which is of course really good in retrospect, but at that point in time when I peeked out the curtains and saw how many people there were, I felt quite a bit of a shiver rush down my spine. I pointed this out to Edward (my co-emcee) and his only response was to walk away from the curtains and start repeating his script lines to himself, over and over and over again.

 6.15pm And so it began, with the grand entrance of the Hall Master, Associate Professor Dr. Ho Yew Kee and his family. All traces or nerves I initially had soon disappeared under the warm response of the crowd, and it was all smooth sailing from the singing of the Malaysian National Song ‘Negaraku’, to the speeches by the Hall Master and Kenneth (Malaysia Night Committee 2009 Chairman) to the officiation ceremony, which involved the Hall Master pasting on the ‘Enter’ key to this year’s logo, ‘Malaysia. my’.

We decided to start things off this year with our own rendition of ‘Here In My Home’, a song performed by multiple Malaysian artistes to showcase their love for Malaysia, as our essential underlying theme this year is Home, and how we treasure it. Given the very VERY diverse range of voices onstage, I was extremely relieved when it turned out sounding pretty good. More importantly though, were the messages of goodwill we had written beforehand and displayed for the audience whilst singing the song, which we hope served to convey our love for our country, no matter where we are.

Then, of course, there was dinner. The chorus of ‘Food, Food, FOOD!’ from both the audience and backstage was a lot louder than initially expected. A LOT louder. I guess everyone must have been really, really hungry. Again, I am unable to comment on the food as I didn’t get to eat any of it, but I heard it was pretty good, and I do hope everyone was satisfied!

7.30pm While things must have seemed pretty quiet onstage from the audience’s point of view (especially as I’m sure everyone must have been much too busy queuing for food than paying attention to closed curtains), the actual fact was that the torrent of activity going on behind the scenes could only be described by one word: MAD. Everyone was changing and memorizing lines and touching up make-up, so much so that no one gave a second thought to food at all, as I later found out. Occasional peeks out the curtains saw things going well with the audience’s food (Note: THANK YOU SO MUCH to all the seniors who helped us out with the food! You guys rock!), but our personal sustenance was a very low priority on the list that day.

Sanity behind stage seemd to be at an all-time low too. 

8.00pm Showtime! The night’s performances were kicked off with a drama written by yours truly, telling the story about a young Malaysian girl named Julie who’s lived in the United States all her life. Bad financial circumstances result in her having to come back to Malaysia, where she initially feels lost, but is gradually reintroduced to the beauty and culture of her homeland by her childhood friend, Ramli. That’s the basic gist of the story, and it was really fun inserting the various cultural elements like the Malay, Chinese and Indian dances, as well as the market scenes into it. The whole point of the drama was to introduce Malaysian culture as a culture with not only aesthetic and entertainment value, but to try to portray a unity and flow between the different facets, and I do hope that this was brought across appropriately!

Nevertheless, I was incredibly proud of the entire cast, all of which very clearly put their best foot forward for the show. Even though my heart was pounding non-stop through the entire drama, I had a wonderful time as soon as I realized things were actually going very smoothly. The audience’s reaction was perfect every time, laughing at the right moments and noticing all the correct minute details. After the drama, we went straight into a fashion show, as part of a performance for the Malay wedding scene. Andy and Wen Yan looked simply adorable on the bersanding seats, all ready to get married! It seemed to me that although it involved the least acting or even moving, this scene had Andy the most nervous of all, even more so than the market scene!

9.00pm The drama ended on a high note, with Xing Ying’s pride and joy, the mass dance. Her long hours of choreographing and planning apparently did pay off really well, judging by the happy, amused faces I saw in the audience during the dance. Even our dear Hall Master was grinning ear to ear.

Just mere performances from us would not be enough for Malaysia Night 2009, so it was our pride and honour to invite our dear Malaysian seniors from Malaysia Night 2008 back onstage with us to perform last year’s theme song, Identiti along with us. It was just our small way of thanking them for all that they have done for us, for making us feel so welcome in KEVII Hall and really making us feel at home. It was a touching scene, and I do believe I caught a not-so-dry eye or two.

Next up was the showcasing of the various talents in Malaysia Night 2009. We had Juin Shiong and Su Yi perform a beautiful song each on the piano, but I do believe that the crowd-stealer was their duet on Jay Chou’s Secret. Then out came Xing Ying and Kenneth to sing Gemilang, literally translated as Excellence, a song popularized by the first Malaysian Idol, Jaclyn Victor, which carries elements of striving to be the best one can be and being capable of achieving anything. (Note: I am to clarify that it was NOT a love song. Repeat, NOT a love song.)

9.30pm So the night went on, with a hearty and hale games session. The game emcees were expecting to have to do quite a bit of work in pulling people onstage for the bamboo dance, air bandung and lompat tali (rope-skipping), but we were all pleasantly surprised when we had a surplus of volunteers! Watching from backstage, it was fun to see not only the volunteers get to have fun, but those watching from amongst the audience be highly amused as well. The air bandung game got a bit messy, with a few spills and contestants having to drink from punctured straws, but it was quite a hit nonetheless. The star of the lompat tali though, was Hui Ning, who proved herself quite the professional as she traversed height after height of rope effortlessly.

All too soon, it was time for the lucky draw, and then a final round of mass dance. As we then went down from the stage to mingle with the crowd and say our thank-yous and good-byes, it was good to sense a general feeling of satisfaction and good feedback! Thank you everyone for coming and supporting this year’s Malaysia Night. We had a blast, and certainly hope you did too!

HallPlay Supper 0910

Writer: Adrian Chia

Photos: Adrian Chia, Kelvin Anggara

“OMG, HallPlay is having its first meeting tonight? What’ll the meeting be about? Work? Can’t you see I already have work up to my neck as it is! Oh? It’s not a meeting but a supper?! OMG, yes yes I will definitely be there! See ya!”

What better way could there be to start work than having a sumptuous supper treat? HallPlay 0910 certainly believes that good food comes before work! Instead of playing overused games to break the ice between its new members, the committee felt that new friendships could be better struck when everyone’s hunger was satisfied. Well, it certainly did not take long before lively chatting and bursts of laughter started coming from all corners of the Dining Hall!

Nicholas, the Producer, started the night’s programmes by giving a rousing speech. Aside from welcoming everyone into the HallPlay family, he also took the opportunity to share his aspirations and expectations for the committee this year. The Steering Committee was then introduced to all, followed by the induction of the various departments. Up next was the Director, Collin and he was there for a very important mission :to answer a question that everyone has been asking – what is this year’s play all about? He certainly did a great job in outlining the play and sending everyone’s imagination wild for a moment. Unfortunately to avoid any spoilers, the author of this article apologises for being unable to disclose further details about the play, but would instead strongly encourage everyone to purchase a ticket to show your support for the production! *Disclaimer: this is an advertisement =P*

Nicholas!

Alright, back to the supper. HallPlay members were a hungry lot, because as soon as the cue was given, a long, snaking queue was quickly formed in front of the serving table. Food was snapped up with alarming efficiency, but the satisfied smiles on everyone’s face certainly justified the committee’s hefty investment in the supper. As the feast came to an end, everyone left with more than just a filled stomach. A new sense of mission had been instilled in them, as well the sense that they were about to embark on a mega-project that would see them slog, sweat and strive hard for the coming months, culminating in the final two nights of production, which holds the promise to be one of the most awesome memories of their time in KE Hall.

All the best to HallPlay 0910!

The Food! Yummy!

The Cast

Tech Crew

SLW

Publicity & Ticketing & Producer & Assistant Producer

Marketing

Set Builders

Stage Crew

Set décor

Costumes