The 2016 edition of the Singapore International Festival of Arts (Sifa) kicked off on August 11, with by-invitation-only guests packing out the Drama Centre Theatre at the National Library. Marking the worldwide Shakespeare 400 celebration this year and underlining “Potentialities”, as the main theme of Sifa 2016, was “Hamlet l Collage”, Canadian director Robert Lepage’s collaboration with Russia’s Theatre of Nations.

The piece is both a visual and acting masterpiece in which human skills and technological prowess live happily together. Set designer Carl Fillion created an automated cube that was raised above the stage, Lionel Arnould filled it with images, Lepage and Bruno Matte added their lighting design, and Thomas Payette his videos, and the result was a series of selected scenes of Shakespeare’s “Hamlet” seen through the mind of an actor portraying the title character. The clue was given through his costume in the first scene when Evgeny Mironov appeared as the actor. Mironov has been recognised |as a Distinguished Artist of Russia and showed the audience that he merited this honour throughout his 125-minute solo performance. Not only did he perform and shift into and out of several roles with ease and at different paces, but he also mastered his entrances into and exits out of the cube.

It’s always fun watching a play you know well staged in a way that you have never dreamed off and in an era when computer graphics and film viewing experience like 4DX take us to places we never imagined, watching live theatre can still put you at the edge of your seat.

I recall my experience two decades ago watching Lepage performing solo in his production “Hamlet” and my amazement at seeing a second actor taking a bow alongside him at the curtain call. He didn’t keep that secret this time as it was evident to the audience that another non-speaking actor was necessary in certain scenes. At the curtain call, though, more than 10 backstage crew members who had helped manoeuvre this technically demanding work also took a bow with the two actors. There’s more to it than meets the eyes in this composite art known as theatre, and our appreciation was truly due.

Meanwhile at the historic Victoria Theatre, the audience sampled a different dramatic flavour as Egyptian playwright and director Ahmed El Attar’s “The Last Supper” offered a rare look not only into contemporary Egyptian theatre but also post-Arab Spring bourgeoisie, which is something we don’t see on the TV news.

This colourful production showcased different generations of actors and their characters’ dialogues, as well as their love of selfies, were filled with such absurdity that I was reminded of many people I know who simply do not care about – and are thus never affected by – what’s happening around them. When dramatic tension rose, El Attar masterfully put in a visual pause, as main actors froze, the stage was swathed with red light and the servant brought in more food at a slow pace.

A major problem for the Asia premiere of this unique treat was that the English surtitles screen was placed too high above the 10 actors who delivered their Arabic dialogue at natural speed. Most members of the audience were thus forced to choose between watching the actors and guessing what they were saying, or reading the surtitles and missing out on the stage action. The dark comedy lost touch with many spectators as a result.

Much more to see

– Don’t miss this week Javanese dance master Sardono W Kusumo’s “Black Sun” and internationally acclaimed Singaporean playwright Huzir Sulaiman’s “The Last Bull: A Life in Flamenco”, in which he traces the life and works of flamenco dancer and choreographer Antonio Vargas.

– Creator of the Athens Olympics opening and closing ceremonies Dimitris Papaioannou will also stage the visual theatre “Still Life”.

– Sifa continues through September 17 at various venues.

– Admission prices range from free to SGD 80 (20percent discount for students and seniors).

– For reservation and more details, visit http://www.SIFA.sg.