Layna captivates audience with spectacular ballet

THE spectacular opening of Life in the Jungle – A Ballet 2014 by Layna Ballet Academy captivated the audience at the Old State Legislative Assembly (DUN) Complex’s Concert Hall.

This recent first-ever performance of the Sarawak-themed ballet artfully combined the magic of music and dance to tell an age-old Iban legend about the creatures of the rainforest and their quest for comradeship and survival.

The show that ran for three nights was well attended and drew wide-ranging praises with audience comments that included wonderful, a triumph, stunning and amazingly high standard.

The original production was first performed in operetta format in 1984 with musical compositions by the late Datin Julia Chong under the auspices of the Social Development Ministry.

The storyline and lyrics were written by the honorary curator of beads of the Sarawak Museum Heidi Munan who is also on the committee for the 2014 production.

The audience was completely captivated by the beautiful lighting and a collection of outstanding and detailed costumes as well as set designs by practicing architect Megan Elizabeth Chalmers.

Megan created a lush rainforest backdrop and stunning portfolio of costumes from the dazzling brilliance of the vibrant fish and a multi-hued array of birds and insects to plalyful monkeys and even ethereal ghosts.

“It was rewarding to see it all come together in a profusion of colour and movement and music,” Megan said.

“It was still making the Sumatran dancers’ hats late into the night a few days before the shows but we got there in the end and I feel we achieved a high standard,” she added.

While some lauded the beauty of ballet and the inventive way in which the chereography captured the movements of the jungle creatures, others relished the opportunity to enjoy the music of a live orchestra and a choir.

The choreography was clever, whimsical, witty, daring and humorous. Life in the Jungle is based on two Iban legends – the role of Pong Kapong (a native cuckoo bird) in pollinating jungle fruit trees and the Iban naming ritual.

Chan Lay Na said it had been “a wonderful experience for both myself and all my students. It was exhausting and demanding in many senses, but worth every bit of effort.”

She noted that her more than 100 young dancers were thrilled to have been a part of the performance and a part of local performing art history.

There was also loud applause for the humorous narrators and the native dance and traditional music ensembles which complemented the ballet.

The show was also aimed at raising awareness about some of the endangered native fauna. Among the threatened species depicted in the production are the Borneo rhino and the clouded leopard.

Forty young musicians from the Sarawak Symphony Orchestra led by conductor Victor Leong accompanied the dancers and were joined by the choir of the Institute of Teaching Education, Batu Lintang campus with vocals, under the directors, Tun Awang Hambali Awang Hamdan and Chong Pek Lin.

The Institute of Teaching Education also provided Iban and Sumatran dancers to complement the ballet dance elements as well as musicians to play traditional native musical instruments.

At the finale performance, organising chairperson Mike Lim took the opportunity to thank all those involved in the production.

Life in the Jungle ran for three performances, starting with Family Night on Jan 17, Gala Black Tie Night the night before and a Finale Night on Jan 18.

Proceeds from the show were divided among three charitable bodies – the Sarawak Kidney Association, the Community Based Rehabilitation Centre, Kuching, and the Kuching Society for the Urban Poor (Skup).

Seeing the power of youth right here in Kuching was something highly gratifying for all.

Indeed, the uplifting final refrain from the song – Life in Sarawak is the life for me – left the audience with that sentiment very much at heart.