Wednesday, October 13, 2010
I've been so busy that I've had no time to update.
THE ARTS AWARDS 2010 IS OVER!!!!!!!
I'm so relieved to have to stop dealing with the security clearance issues at the Istana.
Anyway congratulations to Cultural Medallion winners:
Music - Liang Wern Fook
Literary Arts - Suratman Markasan
Visual Arts - Amanda Heng
And also to the Young Artist Awardees:
Film - Sun Koh
Literary Arts - Toh Hsien Min
Literary Arts - Sonny Liew
Visual Arts - Choy Ka Fai
Visual Arts - Robert Zhao
I was in charge of managing the YAAs, and I have to say they're really very nice, down-to-earth and unassuming people. I really liked talking to Hsien Min, though there were a few sheepish moments for him when he realised that we had all been 'researching' all the YAAs online (including him) when I mentioned some really
archaic letter he wrote back when the Internet was young, circa 1997. "If I'd known it was going to stay up there forever, I'd have never written it!"
I have also managed to wheedle a drawing of a cat from Sonny Liew, the local graphic novel writer. His profession is VERY RARE in Singapore. It's about damn time someone recognised the industry, we need to ramp up our local publications -_- Anyway YAY he will send me the drawing soon. Sparrow is dying to see it. Tons of cat lovers where I work.
As you can see, I had almost nothing to talk about with the Visual Artists. I don't and won't ever get modern art, and they'd be able to see through my pretense in a second because I have no idea what their work is about even after all the interpretation text standing handily nearby.
The ceremony was great, but I was sweating blood before and during the whole thing, waiting for security clearances issues to be verified and then controlling the 2 performance items (NUS Choir, Arts Sphere Chinese Chamber Ensemble) from the rehearsals to the actual run. This is the last time I'm sending a large performance group to the Istana. They're not worth the trouble they come with. Pitchy sopranos -_- I was wincing backstage with Pigeon during the first one minute of their performance.
After the ceremony, there was a dinner reception provided by the Pan-Pacific Hotel. I had to run around bringing the recipients to the Minister, "Minister, may I introduce..." It was a pretty futile task because they were all eating and really, they didn't want to meet the Minister with their mouths full.
The double whammy was when I was carting Toh Hsien Min off to the Minister ("Do I go to him with this?" *gestures to his plate of food*), and the President asked to see him. He looked nervously and half-longingly at his half-eaten dinner plate and went, "Well, now I most certainly HAVE to ditch this."
Okay, okay, we gave them one hour to eat after that, so don't look at me like that.
When I finally got around to eating, I stuffed my face with dessert, much to Sparrow's and Pigeon's consternation ("Whaaaatt, is this your main course? -_-"). Pan Pacific makes heavenly cheesecakes. Well I later moved on to the main courses too, and had a great deal of beef and abalone.
We also celebrated our beloved Wildebeest's birthday in the Istana after the Ceremony was over! It was her birthday yesterday! We got the catering Pan-Pacific hotel staff to provide a cake, and all of us stood around it blocking it from view. Our CEO called her to him, and looked very stern and shook his head, "This is not good. This is really really terrible!"
Wildebeest looked taken aback and dazed, and went, "Why? What happened?"
CEO: Do you know why it's terrible? Because you're still working on your birthday!"
Whereby we stood aside and revealed the cake and started singing the birthday song.
All in all, the ceremony seemed to have gone spectacularly well, considering we had so many hiccups at the start of the day during the dry runs.
More pictures soon... when our official photographer uploads all of it.
Omnia mutantur
11:03 PM
