Rockfest 2012 : A concert that cannot be missed

Reported by : Koh Pin Lang

Edited by : Victor Lee

It has been quite a while since I last went for a concert. I must admit that this is one of the many reasons that I attended ‘RockFest: Because of Rock’, where every hall band made performed renditions of their favorite rock songs. There were a total of 10 performances, ranging from individual hall bands to alumni band to combined bands. Although there were many items performed, I can still remember some of the better ones till today!

The Smoking Marshalls!

KE’s Smoking Marshalls was definitely worth watching. Being the second act of the night, the Smoking Marshall certainly raised the bar for the rest of the bands. With a charismatic lead singer Sheikh and his talented band mates (Deborah, Frederick, Melvin, Eugene and Annisa), everyone was hyped up The band started their performance with a rock version of the Singapore national anthem, stunning the crowd slightly. Though unexpected, I thought the rendition was quite good and judging by the enthusiastic applause from the crowd, everyone else seemed to think so too. The band performed a total of 3 songs. First up was the all- time favorite Power Rangers theme song. It was a real treat to listen to this and clearly everyone was enjoying themselves. I think what really caught me off guard was how talented Eugene was on the guitar! He always seems so quiet in hall but trust me, if you hear him on the guitar you’ll probably change your mind!  Soon, most joined in the singing as Sheikh and Deb belted out the familiar chorus line, “Go Go Power Rangers!”.

Calm and composed, but Melvin rocked the stage!

With the crowd hyped up with Power Rangers Sheikh performed a solo piece, I’ll never let you go, by SteelHeart. Apparently, the song was a favorite of Sheikh since it showed off the original singer’s fantastic vocals. Though I have never heard the song before, I am sure that Sheikh’s vocals are probably comparable to the original singer. As he sang, the crowd waved their hands. The song eventually ended on a high note despite being slightly lengthy. It was during the second song that I realized Sheikh was on a stripping streak. He had taken off his jacket initially and after his second song, his shirt. By the start of the third, he was wearing only his singlet. The third song was a real upbeat song, Final Countdown. As Sheikh sang, he took off his singlet and was singing the song half-naked. For those who are not familiar with Sheikh, he does bodybuilding so his body shape is in top shape. A combination of his antics and the wonderful performance by the band wowed the crowd and all the KEVIIans present cheered at the top of their voices!

Fans rising up to the beat of the music

Another band that was rather unique was the Sheares Band. The adoring SH fans had gathered in front of the stage, all ready to cheer and scream their hearts out. Despite her small stature, the lead singer was really groovy. She and the Sheares Band performed Ricky Martin‘s ‘Livin’ La Vida Loca’ and Sheikh even went on stage to dance. Next up was ‘Smooth’ by Santana. But I think what really got everyone’s attention was the introduction of the band members. Not that they were really good looking hunks or babes, but it is because this band has a DJ! The DJ gave a solo performance during the last song, ‘Larger than Life’. This familiar Backstreets Boys song had fans jumping and I think it was partly the reason why the chairs were removed to allow more people to indulge themselves.

Deborah : Small in stature, powerful in vocals

The Alumni band, Pulses’ performance was indeed different. For one thing, the energy level of this band was probably way higher than the others. As a result, the music was played really loud and I unable to hear the lyrics clearly. What was commendable was that they sang 2 original songs and although I am no connoisseur of rock music, I thought it wasn’t too bad!

The last performance of the RockFest was the combined band from Kent Ridge and Sheares. The last song performed, ‘In the End’ by Linkin Park, ended the show with a BANG! Seeing the large crowd that had gathered in front of the stage, I decided to join them in jumping and singing along. It was an interesting experience though I didn’t expect that jumping would be so tiring! RockFest was indeed a one of a kind experience and I regret not going for last year. Though my ears have stopped ringing, the songs performed remained in my heads though it has been days after the concert. Even now, I’m writing this article while singing to the ‘Humans’ by The Killers, which was performed by TH band. Hopefully everyone can come down to support RockFest next year!

DnD E block contestant: Celine Yeap

Written by Colin Ng

Edited by Ong Hui Shan

In this part of the pageant contestant interview series, we will be finding out more about E Block’s pageant contestant Celine Yeap!

E block pageant contestant, Celine

Q: So let’s start this off with the oh-so-cliché question: Tell me more about yourself.

Celine: I’m Celine, a year 1 Life Science major. In hall, I’m involved in (the) block committee and KE Press, and I play touch rugby, badminton and swim.

E block pageant contestant, Celine (Summer edition)

Q: You are a freshie, so how has your 2 semesters of stay in KE7 been? Have you had any memorable experiences?

Celine: My stay in KE has been a whole new experience of learning how to balance work and play. The most memorable experiences are surprisingly the simplest – suppers, late night HTHTs, camping like muggers at the dining hall and a whole lot more.

Q: It’s good to see that you are enjoying your hall stay. Now, after staying in E block for so long, how would you describe E blockers?

Celine: Die hard supper fans, seriously. What can I say – we have the best block suppers (courtesy of Joanne, our awesome cook cum block head), and not forgetting Alex, our famous muah chee (among other things) chef.

So I guess it is reasonable to conclude that E blockers love to Om Nom Nom J

 

What E blockers love to do

Q: Let’s talk about DnD. Since the theme for the upcoming DnD is related to fear, what is it that you fear the most?

Celine: Beetles, lizards, bugs and other things that crawl around in my room. Haha, all jokes aside, the thing I think I fear the most is taking risks. I would describe myself as someone who is not adventurous. Taking chances and wading into unfamiliar territory is a constant fear. Hall, however, has been a place for me to take risks, try new things and perhaps in time, overcome this fear.

Q: I am sure that KE7 will provide you with many opportunities to do just that. Now, I shall harp on this fear theme: which scary character would you want to be and why?

Celine: Alex Mah. He’s quite scary, (but only) on the surface.

“Scary” Alex

Q: Besides being scary on the surface, what do you think of Alex?

Celine: Alex is the self-proclaimed (but actually not very) cultured ah-beng who often and most if not all of the time creates awkward silences with his awkward comments, provoking allergic reactions from Yasmin when certain expletives (in different languages and dialects) escape his mouth either purposefully or accidentally. But underneath all that, Alex is a nice guy, really.

Q: And for my last question, how confident are you that you will become the pageant queen?
If you hadn’t asked, I would have forgotten that this was a “competition”, haha. To be honest (not trying to sound diplomatic here), we’re so different and to compare each other’s “chances” against the other would do little good. We’re all in this for the fun. The title of Hall Queen is nothing greater than the experience we’ve made out of it!

With that, we conclude this part of our pageant contestant interview series and I hope that now we know a little more about Celine. Look forward to the next part of our series!

DND ’12: Interview with Isaac and Ashley, Block CD

Interviewed by Zachary Low

Edited by Celine Yeap

Today, we find ourselves talking to Isaac Chay and Ashley Tong, CD Block’s very own pageant contestants. Join us as we find out more about what they think of each other, and give us some insights on life in school!

Our CD pageant contestants, Ashley and Isaac

Z: As always, the first question is going to be… tell me about yourselves.

Isaac: I’m in softball, handball, tennis, and also the assistant producer for Hallplay.

Ashley: Marketing, OCIP Laos, and I’m also in NUS Climb (rock climbing).

Previously, Ashley was also overheard saying ‘I rate myself an 11 out of 10.’ That’s some serious belief in your own mojo there. Good stuff!

Z: Very nice. Now, legend has it that Isaac is the object of desire for the girls in this year’s Medicine Year Ones. Ashley, aren’t you worried when you hear knocks on your door at night? Ever received any death threats from jealous doctors-to-be?

Ashley: Oh, I’m not worried at all. Isaac doesn’t want to date M1s: he has a rule on intra-faculty dating.

Isaac nods sagely.

Z: And you know this because?

Ashley: Because I know all of Chay’s deepest, darkest secrets.

Z: And Chay, what do you have to say about this?

Isaac: I’m not the object of desire.

O RLY?!

Ashley: It’s the eyebrows. That’s the real object of desire.

That’s what she said…

Z: So Ash, what’s it like being an Arts student in KE? Ever felt like you were discriminated as part of the minority?

Ashley: People in the science canteen always look at me as if I’m not supposed to be there.

Isaac: She’s the object of desire in Science. Guys look at her like ‘damn, she fly!’

While Ashley is the object of desire for all guys in Science, Chay's eyebrows are THE object of desire (albeit not for his fellow female classmates).

Z: Thanks for clearing things up. So, Chay, are you looking forward to dancing in front of everyone? Going to show the world how you twist?

Isaac: No, no, I can’t do that. I don’t have the moves. But I’ll try.

Ashley (indignantly): Do or do not, there is no try!

The Star Wars fan in me approves.

Z: What’s your greatest source of East Wing pride?

Isaac: Ashley. She motivates me to practice for pageant.

Awww.

Ashley: The people… every night I can knock on someone’s door, knowing that someone will be there for me.

Z: And for our last question: imagine you are a character in a movie and you are facing off with your archenemy. It’s a no-win situation for you, and your enemy is about to make you shuffle off this mortal coil, as Shakespeare so eloquently puts it. What’s the last thing you’re going to say to the camera?

Ashley: Hasta la vista, baby!

Isaac: Mooooooommmmmmy! It’s ooooverrrrrrrr!

And that concludes the second part of our pageant participant interview series. Look out for the next instalment as we begin our journey to the West.

XQRJ

Written by Dean Liaw Yih Hang

Edited by Ong Hui Shan

 

King Edward VII Hall is well known among the NUS halls for being rich in culture, evident in the wide range of cultural activities KE7 residents indulge in. It is impressive that there is not one but three major hall productions in Ke7: Hallplay, Chinese Drama and XQRJ. While Hallplay and Chinese Drama are, as their names suggest, English and Chinese drama productions respectively, XQRJ needs more elaboration on its roots.

The logo of XQRJ, fondly known as the ‘XQ Baby’ with a light green background, which is this year’s theme colour

XQRJ is the acronym for Xin Qing Rong Ji or 心情溶剂. It is a regional Chinese song writing competition organized by the students of KE7. Originally intended only for NUS students, it was soon extended to all institutions in Singapore, and then Malaysia in the past few years. Singapore, the birthplace of famous Chinese artists such as JJ Lin and Stefanie Sun, prides itself on being the hub for the Chinese music industry in the region. As such, XQRJ aims to provide budding song writers and music composers a platform to showcase their talent and promote the Chinese language among younger generations. To eliminate unfair competition from songwriters and composers with experience, this competition is only open to students – presumably amateurs in songwriting.

XQRJ has been enjoying a long standing partnership with Ocean Butterflies Music, a renowned music label which provides professional song writers as judges for the competition, thus making the competition professional and quality-assured. There are 2 categories in the competition: category A requires the contestant to submit an original song coupled with original music. For category B however, music is provided and contestants have to complete the songs based on the music provided. All entries are first rated by judges who then select a handful out of over a hundred entries. The lucky ones are then up for the preliminary round, held at the Ocean Butterflies Music HQ located at Scape Mall along Orchard Road this year. In the preliminary round, the judges come together to select the top 10 from category A and the winner of category B to be put through to the Grand Final.

 

Judges for the Preliminary Round held at Ocean Butterflies Music HQ

With the confirmation of finalists, it is time to prepare for the Grand Finals: first off, the photo shooting session for the finalists held in Singapore during the December vacation. This is then followed by the “Music Without Boundary” project, a new initiative organised in collaboration with KE OCIP (Overseas Community Involvement Project). Members from both committees, together with the finalists, spend a day at the Children’s Aid Society entertaining and teaching the residents music. Rounding up the lineup of events during the holidays, finalists are invited to a music workshop organized by Ocean Butterflies Music and conducted by professional song writers who provide feedback on contestants’ songs.

 

Photo shooting session for finalists of 14th XQRJ

 

Fast forward to 12 February 2012, 6 weeks after the start of the new semester: the day finalists and the XQRJ committee had been anticipating – the XQRJ Grand Finals. Held at the University Cultural Centre Hall and scheduled to start at 7pm, members of the audience started pouring in at 6 to get good seats. The KE7 Hall Master, among other high profile guests, was present to lend his support.

 

Hall master and wife with the Guest of Honour, flanked by the 3 XQRJ organizing heads

 

Emceeing for the event was DJ Kun Hua from 93.3FM who kept the audience hyped and alive throughout the night. He had previously interviewed the finalists during his daily program “牛顿给点力” on 93.3FM.

 

XQRJ finalists on air!

 

 

93.3FM’s DJ Kun Hua

 

The much coveted Grand Prize of XQRJ went to NUS Sheares Hall resident Tan Zhen Lin with his song “叶绿素” which directly translates to “Chlorophyll”: he compares being in love to chlorophyll harnessing energy from the sun to achieve photosynthesis, portraying the love experience as a sunny day.

 

Tan Zhen Lin

 

Second prize winner Gao Sheng Han, a JC student from Raffles Institution, was the composer of “第十七个夏” or “Seventeenth Summer”, a song about teenagers in love.

 

Gao Sheng Han

 

Xu Yiting, also from NUS, won third place with his song “秦淮”, which stood out from the rest with its deep lyrics, comparable to that of an old Chinese poem, brought into the context of a modern day love song.

 

Xu Yiting

 

Despite not winning any of the top 3 awards, ex-KEVIIan Lee Chun Keat, who was performing on behalf of a friend’s entry, bagged the “Best Performance” and “Audience’s Choice” awards with the song “我还爱着你，你知道吗？” (“Do you know I still love you?”).

 

Lee Chun Keat

 

The hard work the XQRJ committee had put in for the past 6 months had finally paid off: the spectacular performance received much praise for its professionalism and rousing success. The bar has definitely been raised for the next organizing committee as XQRJ moves into its 15^th year; as to what they will deliver, we can only wait and see.

 

The faces behind the XQRJ success

 

 

Malaysia Night 2011, an Insider’s View

Written by Dean Liaw Yih Hang

Edited by Ong Hui Shan

Malaysia Night, an annual event in King Edward VII Hall, was started in 2005 by KE7 Malaysians with the aim of fostering bonds among Malaysians and to showcase Malaysian culture to non-Malaysians. The leadership baton is being religiously passed on to Malaysian freshmen every year, and they would take on the organization of the event.

The theme this year was Pasar Malam KElaysia, which translates to KElaysian Night Market. Night markets are common in Malaysia, with almost every urban area in the country boasting its own regular night markets. The night market scene in Malaysia is a vibrant one, usually littered with hawkers and vendors selling cheap food and wares to eager customers who willingly jostle with a boisterous crowd to get their hands on the best bargains. With this rich culture as its backdrop, Malaysia Night did an impression of a typical Malaysian night market – a bazaar-style setting with booths representing the Malaysian states, each with their unique offers. Unlike a stage-based event, this creative setup allowed the crowd to move around freely, maximising mingling opportunities.

Food, Fun and Friends: the three cardinal things to make an event successful. These 3Fs were incorporated into the planning of Malaysia Night. Not only does food bring people together, it is also a cornerstone of any culture – food was thus the main focus of this year’s Malaysia Night, showcasing the signature dishes of each of the 13 Malaysian states.

To augment the event, performances that were uniquely Malaysian were put up. With only 10 Malaysian freshmen admitted into KE7 this year, complicated traditional dances or dramas which require choreographing and tedious practice, like those done in the preceding Malaysia Nights, were out of the question. Instead, the performers this year put up a simple Kompang performance and a traditional costume fashion show. In addition to the revamping of the nature of performances, a bold move to improvise one of the on-stage attractions was made: KE7’s ex-resident and Malaysian senior Lee Chun Keat sang downstage to portray an impromptu street performance, in line with the theme. To round it off, a game session and lucky draw were also held to add to the sizzle of the event.

The night started off rocky, with many slip-ups prior to the opening ceremony, which had to be delayed. Nevertheless, things began running smoothly after the problems were tended to. As anticipated, the food was the main attraction of the event, with food booths boasting long queues. The informal setting of the event allowed the attendees to move about freely and encouraged more interaction. The event ended with a Malay song brought by Xing Ying, a Malaysian senior, who sang the popular patriotic song “Satu Malaysia”. All the other KE7 Malaysians were also invited on stage to join in.

The event was definitely a rousing success. The essence of Malaysia Night can be summed up simply: come for the food, stay for the fun, and leave with new friends. We are all definitely eager to see what is in store for Malaysia Night 2012.

心情溶剂 14th 圆满结束，15th 制度改革

written by Yuan Xuting

edited by Mao Yinan

2012年2月12日，历时153天的第十四届心情溶剂新马中文词曲创作比赛圆满落下帷幕。从Prelime，到music without boundary, 到KE bazaar, 再到Grand Final大决赛。一个仅仅由18个人组成的committee，经过了没日没夜的努力，呈现了一场闪耀的大决赛。

大决赛结束后，XQRJ committee 合照

炫目的灯光，完美的音效，精彩的视频，以及选手们的努力共同构建了这场完整的比赛。其中，KE Media的同学们为此次心情溶剂大决赛录制了视频和现场live feed

Video团队合照。

而此次选手们精美的妆容，则是由KE VII HALL的几位美女们义务帮忙

义务帮忙的化妆美女。

经过了层层角逐，最终产生了Category A 组三强，Category B 组 冠军，以及现场最受欢迎奖，网络社区最受欢迎奖，最佳填词，最佳作词，最佳作曲，最佳编曲，最佳演绎等一共十余个奖项。

Category B 组是第十四届心情溶剂的一次创新，是让选手们，根据由海碟提供的曲目来填写合适的歌词。此次，获得冠军的，是一位来自中国的女留学生，她的参赛曲目是《快乐情人节》。

而Category A,原创词曲组的三强分别是：

第三名，同时获得最佳作词奖的，许一汀《秦淮》。

许一汀，秦淮

第二名，高胜寒的《第十七个夏》。

高胜寒，第十七个夏

第一名，同时也获得最佳演绎奖的，陈振麟《叶绿素》。

陈振麟，叶绿素

在第十四届心情溶剂大决赛结束一个月之后，第十五届心情溶剂的组织团队于本周四，3月15日晚公布。Chairperson: Jin Yuhang, Marketing Director: Liu Jingjing, Design Director: Liu Jiahui, Stage Manager: Guo Yingjian, Production Manager: Wang Yang. 第十五届心情溶剂对以往启用新人作为stage manager 和production manager

制度做出了改变， 留用了第十四届的老人作为stage manager 和production manager。

第十五届心情溶剂会有什么其他的改变么？会带来怎样的新气象呢？又会有怎样精彩的表现呢？让我们拭目以待吧。

Keviinan’s Day – 咱keviian 自己的晚上

written by Shi Yangyang

edited by Mao Yinan

经过了数月的筹备，keviian’s day最终订在了3月8号晚上9点到11点，到那个时候，整个KE都沉浸在一种别样的欢乐之中。

晚上9点，在common hall门口领取了护照以后，便可以到各个station旅行，玩他们的游戏，便收集你的邮票，当收集满邮票以后便可以享受那些可口的食物了。心动不如行动，赶紧领取你的护照去旅行吧~

你拿了你的护照了吗？

首先我们来到Marble Rush 站。这一站的游戏是一个两人对抗游戏：原本两个碗装有相同个数的花球，两个人分别从一个夹到另外一个，1分钟以后看谁的碗里的花球少谁便赢。1分钟计时开始，之间两个参赛者都很聚精会神地看着花球，刚开始的时候花球还会不听话地从筷子上掉下来，但经过一个段时间后，一个一个花球就好像是一个个听话的小孩，乖乖地随着筷子迁徙。两边的比赛也是不相上下。裁判不停地在提醒着时间，30秒，10秒，5秒。。时间到！！！几家欢喜几家愁，有人为比对方多了那么一颗而兴奋不已，有人稳操胜券地在一旁看着裁判数球。最后大家都拿到了自己的邮票。

花球之战

接着我们来到oolong Rabbit站，这一站的游戏可以自己一个人完成。参赛者先在盒子中挑选一个号码，然后根据号码选出自己的武器，接着用自己的武器在1米开外的线后砸堆放紧紧地饮料瓶，砸倒5个便可过关。只见一个参赛者信心十足地去挑了一个数字，当主持人把一个软绵绵的抱枕给他时，便犯了难。这么软，要怎么砸呢？面对的可是相对比较硬的饮料瓶额。。不管怎样，都要试一下。望着那挑战的饮料瓶，参赛者把抱枕囚成一团，使得力量尽量集中，接着便扔向那十几个瓶子。干得不错，小小抱枕砸开了一个小瓶子。再接在励！第二次，想同的方法，又有两个瓶子投降。再有2个就好了。第三次，小小失误，抱枕从瓶子上方飞开了。没事，下一次能更好的！果然，第四次，当抱枕飞向瓶子时，大家都惊呆了。5个，不6个瓶子接着倒下去。只有两三个还在苦苦挣扎。此次抱枕大战饮料瓶一站，抱枕取得完胜！

oolong rabbit

当我们还想继续去其他站收集邮票时，这个时候，East Wing和West wing 的对抗开始了，完全吸引了大家的目光。此次对抗主要注重于团队合作。首先一名参赛者要带着晾衣架绕过参照物走回来，接着加上第二名参赛者穿上挂在晾衣架上面的衣服一起再次绕过，再加上第三名穿上晾衣架上的第二件衣服再次挑战，当三名参赛者都完成任务时，哪个队用的时间少便胜利。当两队都选好参赛者后，比赛开始。比赛分男女两队。West Wing 的女生稍稍落后于east wing。接下来West wing的希望便全寄托在男生这边。果然，West wing的男生没有让大家失望。第一个男生首先冲出起跑线，很快便回到终点，稍微领先East Wing，接着，两个男生配合默契地再次领先对方冲出终点。到第三个时，当West wing跨越障碍物刚刚要往回走时，east wing的男生到达障碍物，这势必会引起些许冲撞，然而，配合默契的West wing 3个男生再次巧妙地躲过了，一路领先到达终点，为此次挑战画上完美的句号。

衣架之战

体验完精彩的游戏后，大家都迫不及待地去享受那可口的食物，有诱人的pizza，水果沙拉，自己做的甜点等等。

诱人的食物

在此，衷心感谢keviian’s day 的筹划者们，谢谢你们给了我们这么精彩的一个夜晚。谢谢你们！

DND ’12: Interview with Jack and Jen, Block AB

Interviewed by Zachary Low

In the first of the pageant contestant interview series, we sit down for a short chat with Jack Neo and Jen Yeh from AB, to find out what makes them tick. Please forgive any interjections by members of the public while the two of them are providing thoughtful answers to the questions posed.

Our AB pageant contestants: Jack Neo and Jen Yeh

Z: So, tell me about youselves.

Jack (lying on the floor): I’m in softball, marketing, hallplay marketing, and a part-time vegetarian.

Note: Jack is also Mr. Science and Mr. Personality!

Jen: I make pancakes.

Jen is also in touch rugby, choir, KE media, hallplay set design…

Celine: She does everything.

Z: So of all the time spent in hall so far, what has been your defining experience?

Jack: When I first moved into hall. It was good. Especially the first night – it was a bit rough, but I liked it.

Jen: That’s hard… (this provokes lots of eyebrow raises from other people). But I’d say Rag. Rag was awesome.

Z: Very nice. And now because I like food, I’m going to ask about it. Jen, what’s your favourite Singaporean food, and why?

Jen: Singaporean food is actually pretty good. (Nods of approval from assembled pageant contestants). But I like nasi lemak…

Z: Why? Because it’s fattening?

Jen: Because the lady who serves it is really nice.

Z: Jack, what do you have to say about Jen’s choice of food?

At this point, we must note that Jack is speechless and unable to provide a coherent answer in response to Jen’s answer on why nasi lemak tastes good. Jen responds indignantly by questioning Jack’s vegetarian orientation, and the ensuing argument breaks into a discussion of their daily diet and monthly expenses.

One must wonder whether there are any trust issues between the two.

Jen and Jack, apparently suffering from some minor trust issues.

Z: Rumour has it that AB block houses many party animals. Is this true?

Jen: No… it’s all in CD. Not AB!

Jack (nodding sagely in agreement): Yup. All the havoc is in CD.

The two of them proceed to elaborate on this. It’s good to see them united on at least one issue.

Z: Jen, what’s your favourite fictional character?

Jen: Peter Pan.

Wesley: Not Jack Sparrow?

Jen: No! Well, Peter Pan can fly and he never grows old.

Alex: Peter Pan never reached puberty.

I encourage you, dear reader, to use your imagination to decipher Jen’s reaction to Wesley and Alex. After all, that’s what Peter Pan would have wanted you to do.

Z: Alright Jack, tell me why any girl should date you. Is it because you’re a physicist with a working knowledge of everything in the universe?

Jack: Because any girl who meets me will be attracted to me, like the Earth is attracted to the Sun – with a large force inversely proportional to the distance squared.

Z: Very good, Jack. I hope you put your working knowledge to good use. And finally, can the two of you tell us whether you can be like Jack and Jill and have adventures on the hill?

Jack: Ask Jen.

Jen: Jack can have adventures by himself.

Our interview with the couple from AB ends with Team Jen beating Team Jack 1-0, courtesy of a last minute verbal burn.

And that concludes our chat with Jack and Jen. Look out for the next in our ‘interview-with-the-pageant-contestant’ series, also known as ‘Zach-will-never-interview-himself’.

Around the World in One Night – KEVIIans Day, 2012

Written by Ng Wee Yang

Edited by Celine Yeap

KEVIIans day, the event that all KEVIIans had been waiting for took place on the 8^th of March. The even began at 9 pm. KEVIIans day is a time in which we, KEVIIans, celebrate and appreciate the contributions of each and every KEVIIan to hall, no matter what activities they are involved in. This year’s theme for KEVIIan’s Day was “Around the World in 1 Night”, a concept borrowed from the well known movie “Around the World in 80 Days”. Following the theme, the communal hall was decked out in decorations of national flags, cut-out aeroplanes and even clouds to depict the multi-cultural and multi-ethnicity of this year’s theme.

Welcome to KEVIIans Day 2012!

When I arrived at the communal hall at 9m, I was greeted warmly and handed a red “passport”. Apparently, the condition was that one had to play certain games to gain a “stamp” to be used as a token to some of the mouth-watering food that was on display. Talking about food (where do I even start?!) there was a sumptuous spread of delicacies from different continents and countries. To mention a few –  there was pasta and Pizza bread on offer at the Italian counter, a mixed fruit salad with yoghurt, chicken stew and garlic bread (on offer at the Western corner) and my personal favourite, Iranian Kebab. The iconic Taiwanes milk tea, complete with tapioca pearls and sparkling ribena cordial was there to quench our thirst.

Food from many different countries was up for grabs!

No doubt, one of the many highlights of KEVIIans day were the station games. With ridiculous and questionable names, we had games such as flippity flip, kegelspiel, simisutra, marble rush and oolong rabbit. Being slightly less adventurous, I decided to participate in “Flippity Flop”, an old-school eraser game in which the objective was to flip your eraser on top of  that of your opponents’. I daresay, as simple as it sounds, it was not as easy as I thought (though eventually I did win the game)! The next game that I tried was “Kegelspiel”, a game modelled after the sport we all know as bowling. The twist to this – instead of bowling pins, water bottles were used and the bowling ball was replaced by either sandals or pillow. This was a game that required an adequate amount of force used to launch your sandal or pillow. Next up, I played “Marble Rush”, a game involving the use of chopsticks to transfer marbles into your opponent’s bowl. The one with the most marbles at the end of one minute loses. Contrary to what I believed, my chopstick handling skills were not up to par! So if you thought your handling of chopstick was good, you should have tried out this game and be the judge for yourself!

Kegelspiel, bowling with objects you never knew you could bowl with!

The next strangely-titled game I played was called “Oolong Rabbit”. The concept fitting to this year’s theme  was based on language translation. Languages such as Japanese, Korean, Latin and French were featured. The objective was to translate as many languages in a single sentence – highly amusing, I would say, for a native speaker. Another game, called the “War Game” featured shooting your opponent’s toy soldiers with nothing more than a rubber band and a small paper ball.

Shoot your opponent's toy soldiers with nothing more than a rubber band and a small paper ball.

The ultimate highlight of the night were two stage games – Clothing Maniac and a Hotdog Bun eating competition. These stage games had the whole communal hall in a state of uncontrollable laughter. Needless to say, it was hilarious watching the (sabotaged) volunteers from both wings battle it out. The clothing maniac had east wing girls pitted against west wing girls and the likewise for guys. In the spirit of fun, it was a race between the two teams – seeing who could change into jackets hanging on clothes rack fast enough and complete a circuit whilst being attached to a clothing rack. The mere sight of them moving around in a hanger and in a group was hilarious. The second game was a bun eating competition. Teams players would take turns to eat the hotdog buns filled with the unknown ingredients. From peanut butter to chilli padi, the contents were unimaginable. The fastest team to eat all their hotdog buns would win. In the end, East wing won this competition. Frankly speaking, I salute those involved in the competition, eating full and suspiciously filled buns was no easy task.

Clothing maniac!

With the end of this last game, KEVIIans’ Day ended.  An eventful night it was, and an even more memorable one! Let’s see how next year’s event would upstage this year’s KEVIIans day!

Amplitude 11/12

written by Shi Yangyang

edited by Mao Yinan

由culture committee 主办，汇集了各个hall的合唱团和 个人独唱的精英聚集在一起给大家贡献了一场精彩，让人久久不能忘怀的表演——Amplitude。让我们再一次来回顾一下吧。

当黑夜的幕落下，美丽的彩虹灯打下，帅气的主持人走出，今天的Amplitude终于开始了。紧接着，在欣赏完Eusoff, Temask,  Raffles, Kent Ridge 和Sheares hall的精彩表演以后，终于迎来了King Edward VII Hall的第一个表演：女高音Hazel的个人独唱：O Mio Babbino Caro.

完全陶醉其中的Hazel

只见一身白裙好像天使一般的Hazel站在舞台上，发卡闪闪发光，好像在预示着接下来的时间Hazel也会在这个舞台上发光发彩。果然，当音乐响起，Hazel 用她最动人的歌声向我们诠释了这首美妙的歌。她时而轻快，时而雄浑，时而闭着眼睛，完全陶醉其中，温柔而祥和，时而又睁大眼睛，让人不敢直视。最后伴随着一个完美的谢礼，这首歌暂时告一段落，但这旋律却一直在脑海中荡漾。

作为压轴出场的是King Edward VII Hall 合唱团和个人独唱联合出版的The Phantom of the opera(歌剧魅影)。紧跟着一个个身穿白裙的小天使们和带着面具出场的男生后面的是今天的三位主场：Hazel， Colin，Joan

Joan and Hazel

和钢琴演奏者：Winnie Foo.一段标志着歌剧魅影的Ah过去以后接着的是天使Hazel 的一阵独白，清纯而又有活力。与后面那一群天使们的互动也显得很生动。特别是中间在猜测男主角Joan的心意时，完全唱出了女儿家那种害羞，胡思乱想的心态。

诉说自己心里的感觉

当男主角Joan出来后，Hazel与Joan的互表心意，Colin时不时出来唱两句，好像捣乱似的，但实则不然。没有他，整个歌曲就会显得呆板很多。在另一方面Joan的声音在男生合唱的衬托下显得更加雄壮，有磁性。当Joan 和Hazel最后手牵手一起走出的时候，大家仿佛都看到了爱情的力量，为有情人终成眷属而开心。

有情人终成眷属

然而这并不是歌曲的最后。紧接着《希望你能够在我身边》的清纯美人和最后结尾的时候女高音Hazel 归来，再次向我们展现了她雄厚的唱功。。那不断往上走的Ah~让台下的观众叹为观止，甚至在结束了以后还久久回味。。为今年的Amplitude画上了一个完美的句号。

最后，请让我代表大家向KE的合唱团和个人表演说一句：你们是好样的！还有culture committee：谢谢你们给了我们一个这么精彩的表演！

Chinese Drama 倾情奉献——Amber, 琥珀

written by Yuan Xuting

edited by Mao Yinan

    到底是什么在影响我们的爱憎？挑起我们的欲望？左右我们的视线？引发我们的爱情？

这是今年King Edward VII Hall, Chinese Drama Group倾情奉献的剧目《琥珀》所希望揭示的——爱情尽管悲伤，依然是我们所知道的最美好的事。

一个是玩世不恭的唐璜氏人物，一个是看似普通的自然博物馆解说员。两条应该不会有交集的平行线，却又偏偏的交汇，而后，故事就此展开，从此纠葛不清。有些愤世嫉俗，有些自以为是的高辕原以为自己可以诱惑那个看上去单纯有些小羞涩的小优，却在不自知时被其吸引。

深情对视的高辕和小优。

什么是爱情？我们自以为喜欢的，却无聊乏味？我们自以为厌恶的，却深具魅力？

《琥珀》，在短短的几个小时之内，给观众展现了一个小型的社会百态。夸张，却又那么真实的扣人心弦，引人发省。无疑，《琥珀》是成功的，从ucc hall的座无虚席，观众拍案叫绝就可见一斑。演员们出色到位夸张又大胆的表演，让观众们大呼“重口味。

“重口味”的场景之一

而犀利一针见血的台词，又让他们大呼过瘾。把人心的丑恶，人性中的贪婪以夸张的手法放大，以反讽的方式表达，当代社会的虚假，恶心，世风日下，表露无遗。社会上各个阶层各种身份的人物，有着一张张虚假虚荣的面具，而面具之后是他们不为人知的欲望。《琥珀》把这一张张面具撕开，把一切的交易，目的，欲望，摊开在大家的面前。这些有些过激的台词，有些超出了大家一般的认知。抑或是，违背的一贯的信仰。让阳光刺破面具，让所谓的楚楚衣冠不复存在，让以往所相信的“真理”被打破，《琥珀》所希望的，是在一个个笑料之后，在观众笑过赞叹过之后，能够有所思考。

一直以来，Chinese drama group所带给我们的表演都是深刻的，引人思考的。当然，随之而来的，是有些难懂的剧情，有些难以理解的情节。这也让观众们在欣赏之后，仍然讨论不止争论不休。

《琥珀》的表演落幕，而其余韵仍在。在大家念念不忘《琥珀》的精彩时，也不妨静心期待着明年Chinese drama group会给我们带来什么惊喜吧。