The Nightingale by SRT {Giveaway}

It's time for another production by the Singapore Repertory Theatre! 

Last Saturday, Noey and I were treated to the opening performance of The Nightingale, the latest offering by SRT's The Little Company (TLC). Like Rapunzel, which we caught and loved earlier this year, The Nightingale is based on a well-known fairy tale, this time by Hans Christian Andersen. It tells the tale of the Emperor of China who hears and is enchanted by the song of a nightingale. Desiring to hear her song day and night, he puts her in a gilded cage to sing for his pleasure. But captivity wears on the nightingale, who eventually stops singing. At the same time, the Emperor is given a mechanical singing nightingale that he is able to make sing for him any time he chooses. What is to happen to the nightingale now? Will the Emperor see the folly of his actions? 

Three cheers for the Emperor of China!

I have always felt that TLC's productions are of a high quality and I was glad to find that The Nightingale featured the same good scripting and catchy songs that I've come to expect. I find it painful to watch shows where things are dumbed down for kids or that overly rely on physical humour. That was not the case here. In fact, the narration is in done in rhyming verse, something that I appreciated even if Noey might not have noticed. The music, with its catchy tunes, is also a draw. I liked the fact that different genres of music were used to differentiate the nightingales, with the real bird singing a lilting aria, and the mechanical bird singing to a hip hop beat. You can check out the following video to sing along to the mechanical bird's song!

What I did feel could have been done better was the audience participation portion of the play, which felt a bit like it was included in order that there be audience participation rather than being a necessary part of the play. The original story of The Nightingale is also not one of my favourites. Props however to the cast and crew for putting on an engaging show. Noey and I enjoyed it and he gave it five stars (out of five) when asked, so you know he thought it was great!

What the Emperor wants, the Emperor gets...

The Nightingale is now playing at the DBS Arts Centre - Home of SRT from 1 Aug to 14 Sep 2014, with shows at 11am and 2pm on Saturdays, Sundays and Public Holidays, and at 10am on Tuesdays to Fridays. Tickets are priced on Weekdays at $25 (Cat 1) and $22 (Cat 2) and Weekends $35 (Cat 1) and $32 (Cat 2), and can be purchased from Sistic.

The Nightingale 夜莺 will also be staged in Mandarin from 18 Sep to 11 Oct 2014 following its run in English. You can buy tickets to The Nightingale 夜莺 here.

The Nightingale with the Emperor and the Kitchen Maid.

GIVEAWAY!

Here's a blog readers special: I have ONE PAIR OF TICKETS to the performance of The Nightingale on Saturday 30 Aug, 11am to give away! To enter this draw, you have to complete the following steps:

1. Like the Singapore Repertory Theatre Facebook Page

2. Like the Life is in the Small Things Facebook Page

3. Like and Comment on this Facebook photo, telling me why you would like to win the tickets.

You have to complete all 3 steps to qualify so don't miss any out! Use the Rafflecopter widget below to indicate that you've done the above. You can also get additional chances by completing the rest of the steps.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

This giveaway ends on Mon 18 August 2014, 11.59pm and is open to Singapore residents only. Winners will be contacted by e-mail and will have 48 hours to respond, failing which a new winner will be drawn. All incomplete entries will be disqualified.

P.S. There are another two pairs of tickets up for grabs over at Princess Dana Diaries for the show on Sunday 31 Aug, 11am! Hop over to enter!

*We received complimentary tickets to the show for the purpose of this review, and the giveaway tickets as well as the production photographs used in this post are courtesy of SRT. All opinions are, as always, strictly my own.