Community spring issue (feb 2015) by Warwick Singsoc

community Spring 2015

Spring Issue

February 2015

T h e U n i ve r s i t y o f Wa r w i c k S i n g a p o r e S o c i e t y

‘ice to meet you: Ski Trip 2014 In this issue:  Ski Trip 2014  Term 2 Potluck  MSA-Singsoc Paintball  Les Misérables Theatre Trip  One World Week  Production 2015 Update Photo by Lionel Low

Mark Lim

Excited for Production? Read co-director Werty Heng’s rib-tickling update on how rehearsals are coming along on Page 6!

From the moment the academic year started, I could not wait for the Singsoc ski trip. On the 6th of December 2014, when we finally got to the resort, my expectations were immediately exceeded. The entire resort was much larger, newer and more modern than the resort of the previous year. The next 6 days were spent skiing or snowboarding both in classes as well as amongst ourselves. The nights were equally amazing. Apart from buffet dinners which never let us down, we also played many card games, including the Resistance and Saboteur, as well as explored the nearby town. The most memorable part of the

entire trip was the day where everyone wore their onesies to ski and snowboard. It was quite amazing to watch everyone come together to colour and light up the slopes with our onesies. This ski trip was not all about skiing or snowboarding, it was also an opportunity for many of us to interact with and befriend others in our batch as well as in other batches whom we have not had the chance to properly meet. Having been to the last year's ski trip, I had high hopes for the ski trip this academic year. I can safely say that it did not disappoint. I strongly recommend everyone who wants to try something new to go for the next Singsoc ski trip.

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Iron Chef Warwick:Term 2 Potluck On the 16th of January 2015, Singsoc held its first event of the new year - the termly potluck - which was attended by a good number of freshers as well as second- and third years. Our members filled the Social Sciences Café to the brim, with plenty of merriment and chatter all around. It was heartening to see so many people bringing in interesting dishes and trying their hand at fancy recipes to share with their friends. This term’s spread included everything from sushi and savory bite-sized tarts to cheesecakes and layered green tea creations: a true feast for the senses!

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Pain(t)ball: MSA-Singsoc Paintball Outing Tay Si Yi It was my first time playing paintball and, although I ended up covered in bruises at the end of the day, I still thoroughly enjoyed myself. The stress and responsibility associated with holding a rifle in the military is thankfully absent when holding a paintball gun: every round fired off in the military has to be accounted for, but not when you're playing paintball... which probably explains why most of us ended up purchasing a hundred or more additional paintball pellets after only the first round! I felt that the paintball company did a good job in coming up with the missions and arenas for each match, especially the one where (putting a twist on the typical game) we had to capture a flag and bring it forward to our enemy's base. The unfortunate part was that the ground was extremely muddy and some of us had to throw our shoes away because we weren't prepared for the bog-like terrain. Some advice to those who are keen to try out paintball with Delta Force: wear shoes that you wouldn't mind throwing away! During the matches, I found that skills I had learnt while training in the Singapore Armed Forces (SAF) benefitted me greatly, such as taking proper cover and providing covering fire for my team mates. I'm certain some of the guys who went for paintball would have found their Basic Military Training (BMT) beneficial as well. At the end of the day, the Singsoc team fought our way to victory in most of the games, though the MSA team kept us on our toes all the way. To be fair, they had a large number of girls in their group, while there were only two of us girls on our side and many of the guys in our team had gone through BMT and handled a real rifle before. Friendly competition aside, I spoke to a few girls from MSA during the day and made some new friends. This was a good initiative between MSA and Singsoc and I do look forward to more of these events to come.

ÂŠ 2015 The University of Warwick Singapore Society

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Going south to the West End: Les Misérables theatre trip On the 28th of January, Singsoc was proud to organise the first theatre trip of the year to watch

Les

Misérables

Queen's Theatre in London. Participants were ferried by chartered coach to the theatre in the afternoon and had plenty of time to indulge in some delicious

oriental

food

nearby Chinatown before watching the evening show. A huge thank you to Yu Jun for corralling everyone together, and to our members and guests for their support!

Bringing Singapore to the UK: One World Week Yan Han Goh Prep for OWW lasted much longer than we expected, we spent 7 hours blending peanuts and microwaving muahchee non-stop - with the exception of the fire alarm at 11.30pm disrupting our flow - but we had a great time working together even though we all went home at 3am. I'm pretty sure not everyone knew that muahchee could be made so easily just by microwaving glutinous rice flour, water and oil! When we were selling the muahchee, it was great to see many Singsoc members coming down to the booth to help where they could, be it 出钱 or 出力 (: Even though we didn't sell off everything, I think we did better than expected and everyone who bought our food genuinely enjoyed it. Watching the customers' faces light up in surprise when they sampled the muahchee was certainly amusing, it was as if they had expected it to taste funny! It was nice to see all the different culture-based societies all clustered together and even though I didn't try much apart from ondeh ondeh and bubble tea, everything looked delicious! I think OWW is a great event that allows both locals and international students learn more about each other's food, which is a really important part of culture. © 2015 The University of Warwick Singapore Society

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Fassion for pashion: OWW Fashion Show Nicole Chua I was never a model, I had never considered modelling before, and I certainly did not know how to model. So when I was first approached to take part in OWW, I was very hesitant, if not reluctant, to join the team. Last year’s OWW performance set the bar really high, and we were pressured to live up to people’s expectations. To make matters worse, we were working against a tight deadline as practices only started two weeks before the actual show. However, as time went by, we realised that being a part of OWW was more about enjoying the entire process of putting up an entire show together as a team. We learnt something new everyday—a new dance move, a new way of walking, a new costume change—every rehearsal was a (sometimes physical) challenge for us in ways we did not anticipate. Through our countless failed attempts at choreographing a dance routine and learning to strut on the catwalk, we managed to put up something that we all really enjoyed being a part of. Participating in OWW has, thus far, been one of the best decisions that I’ve made since coming to Warwick. It was a great experience with some of the best people that I’ve come to know. Justinn Toon

I’ve been on stage for multiple reasons, on multiple occasions, but modelling is definitely a fresh experience for me. Though I was hesitant about taking it up, looking back, I am thankful for choosing to seize the opportunity that I was presented with. Though tiring, the new experience allowed me to understand what modelling on stage was about and, at the same time, enjoy the moments with friends on- and off-stage. Costumes wise, we ransacked our own cupboards to find costumes that were as wild as possible, following the theme. However, one of the costumes did involve little clothing. For the main character, the lion, he only wore sweat pants with red and orange cloth tied to his elbows. This displayed the how majestic the lion was, which represented Singapore, the lion city. The short skit slowly evolved when people in formal wear took over the stage and conquered the lion, stealing the ‘wild side’ away from Singapore and converting it into the urban jungle we know today. This experience with my friends was definitely unique and I enjoyed it thoroughly.

community Spring 2015

Interview with a director: Production 2015 Updates Werty Heng Hiya! Apparently it’s once again time to check in with the Production team! So, we just completed our first full run on Tuesday. Like most first times go, it was awkward, messy and left much to be desired. But it was also memorable. I say memorable because the first full run is a milestone for any production. This is where the various sections of the Production team (which have previously been largely working in isolation) like the cast, crew, lights and sounds, have to work in coordination for the first time. You’ll certainly not expect them to be Drift-compatible. But like I said, it’s a milestone. We’re heading into the final stretch, a month (!!) before performance day. The best part is: it can only get better from here. We’ll continue doing runs because coordination is key. The crew will be bringing in more props and set, fleshing out the scenes (so the audience doesn’t have to use their imagination too much). Costumes are being acquired and prepared which we’re looking forward to. The actors will now face intensive rehearsal sessions, where even the way their characters walk will be scrutinised. We’ve covered every scene, and the cast knows what has to be said and done at which point in time. Our aim now is to polish them up, to make their characters look convincing. When you watch them perform on the day itself, their bodies will be inhabited by completely different people. It’s all really coming into its own, and I honestly feel like a proud parent. A proud parent who, together with Dom and Fiona, created a three-person IVF embryo (which the House of Commons has just on Tuesday voted in favour of legalising). Anyway. Directing has been a whole different ball game from acting! When I took up the job initially, I assumed 6 years worth of acting would be directly transferrable. Boy was I wrong. When I look at a scene, I get a sense of how I could portray it as an actor, but I struggle to put this in words! Sometimes I wish I was an actor again, so I would only need to jaga myself and not have to be mindful of 5 people in a scene. But working with a bunch of incredibly fun people keeps me going. We try a scene again and again, and combined with the actors’ own unique perspectives the end result is far better than anything I envisioned. I’m really proud of our 36-person embryo, and you should all come check out our freaky monster baby. tl;dr : The weather continues charming. Those Who Can’t Teach is happening on 6 March. Tickets are £6 each or £30 for 6. Check us out at: https://www.facebook.com/events/943223329029720/ © 2015 The University of Warwick Singapore Society

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The University of Warwick Singapore Society c/o Warwick Students' Union Warwick SU Gibbet Hill Rd Coventry CV4 7AL United Kingdom www.warwicksingsoc.com contact@warwicksingsoc.com

The University of Warwick Singapore Society (Warwick Singsoc) is a 200-odd member society under the umbrella of the University of Warwick Students' Union Societies Federation. Our stated aims are to serve as a home-away-from-home for overseas Singaporeans studying in Warwick, as well as a platform from which non-Singaporeans can experience Singaporean culture.

For more information, visit our website or drop us an email. ÂŠ 2015 The University of Warwick Singapore Society