The Street Car Named Desire triggered a reflective response in me that I was a very reluctant recipient of. There was someone that I was very close to at one point in my life because I had respected and was enthralled with her when we first met. She was my first Cantonese Opera teacher, Wanda Chun (白艷紅)
It was in the late nineties, a friend had wanted me to go play mah jong with him at a music club because they were short one player. I wasn't too keen on it but after a lot of cajoling and pleading, I gave in. I still remember it like it was yesterday. We played in this small room because the club had a gathering that night. When that first clanging of the cymbals started, I found myself quite captivated by the music. There are many reasons that I will not go into now as to why I love Cantonese Opera and joined this club. The reason that I will say was that the members of this club consisted of young and old. Anyway, that night was the beginning of my cultural submersion into this art form and of a period where I witness first hand, Wanda's spiraling decent into the la la land.
No comments:
Post a Comment