KUALA LUMPUR, April 8 — Nature is often regarded as the greatest teacher of life and survival.
This age-old wisdom takes centrestage in The Orang Orang Drum Theatre's (OODT) upcoming production, Kaka-Lala, next month.
Kaka-Lala, a Cantonese word which means "every little corner of the world", compares the humble life in a fruit orchard to the familiar city life and sheds light on the relationship between people and the environments that they live in.
OODT have always reflected on urban life in their previous works, such as Hidup Ini Senget (2014), LaguKu (2015), The Dialogue (2017) and LaguKu2.0 (2019).
In 2021, the performing arts group embarked on the Shan-Ka-La project to explore the simple, unpretentious orchard life and sample the “natural flavours” of life.
Founded in 2013, OODT core members Boyz Chew, Zyee Leow and Damien Leow developed a theatrical vocabulary using the sheer beats of 24 festive drums and created a unique form of performing arts through their interactions with traditional cultures.
The team has performed at various international music festivals such as Sziget Festival 2019, WOMADELAIDE 2020, Venice Theatre Arts Festival, Venice Open Stage, and the Danse en Ville Dance Festival in Belgium and Germany.
To date, OODT has also garnered 16 nominations for the BOH Cameronian Arts Award, winning Best Music and Sound Design, Best Group Performance (2015), Best Group Performance - Instrumental, Best Musical Direction, Best Production Values, Best Music & Sound Design (2020); and Best Original Composition (2023).
The Kaka-Lala drum theatre will take place at Pentas 2, Kuala Lumpur Performing Arts Centre from May 16 until 19.
Ticket prices range from RM68 to RM168 and can be purchased here.
