Festival Picks

FESTIVAL PICKS

Can’t Pay? Won’t Pay! 《绝不付账》 NUS Chinese Drama 15 & 16 Mar \| 8pm \| UCC Theatre \| $19 & $16 Performed in Mandarin with English surtitles *Shows on 16 Mar have been sold out* Economic crises, accompanied by unreasonably huge increases in prices of food, utilities and other necessities in life, have driven people to turn to the last resort - Take without paying! Desperate housewives cause more than a street riot while hiding their actions from the incompetent police force and even worse, from their own husbands! With characters coming in and out of windows and doors, a farcical carnival ensues. Set somewhere in Asia, Dario Fo’s uproarious comedy Can’t Pay? Won’t Pay! is translated and adapted by director Li Xie into Mandarin from the original Italian, and holds up a satiric mirror to these uncertain financial times. 在经济危机的巨大阴影下，涨价狂潮席卷衣食住行等方方面面，人们无以为生，被逼无奈之下不得不采取最后手段 – 巧偷豪夺！绝望的主妇们则对碌碌无为的警察甚至是自己的丈夫们瞒天过海，悄无声息地筹划起更甚于街头骚乱的阴谋！伴随着角色们的你来我往，一个荒谬绝伦的另类狂欢节渐渐拉开序幕。由李邪导演精心改编，国大戏剧竭力呈现，Dario Fo令人捧腹的经典喜剧Can’t Pay? Won’t Pay!也将于今年入乡随俗，给亚洲现今瞬息万变的金融时代竖起一面讽刺与反思的镜子。

About the Artist
Li Xie Principal Tutor NUS Chinese Drama A freelance theatre practitioner and mask-maker, Li Xie performs, writes, directs and has taught acting and movement in LASALLE- College of the Arts and Nanyang Academy of Fine Arts. She is also the associate artist of Drama Box, and an active member of a local multi-disciplinary arts group, Collective Mayhem. The actor-creator has undergone training from Odin Teatret, "Biomechanics" by Bodganov Gennadi (Russia), "Alexander Technique" by Niamh Dowling (UK), "Commedia Dell'arte" by Antonio Fava (Italy) and "Theatre of the Oppressed" workshops by Headlines Theatre (Canada) and has learnt mask making from Donato Sartori (Italy). Li Xie was awarded the Young Artist Award by National Arts Council (Singapore) in 2005.