Tag Archives: arts

Dharma and Drama greet Thai opera

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http://www.nationmultimedia.com/news/life/art_culture/30294198

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September 01, 2016 01:00
By SOMTOW SUCHARITKUL

Getting a feel for medicine

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http://www.nationmultimedia.com/news/life/art_culture/30294200

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September 01, 2016 01:00
By PARINYAPORN PAJEETHE N

Noriko returns in triumph

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http://www.nationmultimedia.com/news/life/art_culture/30294194

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September 01, 2016 01:00
By The Nation

Science looks at art

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ศาสตร์เกษตรดินปุ๋ย : ขอบคุณแหล่งข้อมูล : หนังสือพิมพ์ The Nation

http://www.nationmultimedia.com/life/Science-looks-at-art-30294043.html

CONTEMPORARY ART

Phatarawadee Phataranawik
The Nation August 30, 2016 1:00 am

Nopchai installation “Retouching the negatives” is an interactive affair. Nation/Thanachai Pramarnpani

Nopchai installation “Retouching the negatives” is an interactive affair. Nation/Thanachai Pramarnpani

Nopchai Ungkavatanapong, Nipan Oranniwesna, curator Kamolwan Boonphokaew, Wantanee Siripattananuntakul and Chitti Kasemkitvatana, from left, stand next to Nipan’s sculpture '2401'. Nation/Thanachai Pramarnpani

Nopchai Ungkavatanapong, Nipan Oranniwesna, curator Kamolwan Boonphokaew, Wantanee Siripattananuntakul and Chitti Kasemkitvatana, from left, stand next to Nipan’s sculpture ‘2401’. Nation/Thanachai Pramarnpani

Chitti re-created 'One thing after another Even #1- La Seine un dimanche (10/06/2012).Nation/Thanachai Pramarnpani

Chitti re-created ‘One thing after another Even #1- La Seine un dimanche (10/06/2012).Nation/Thanachai Pramarnpani

Nopchai’s 'Tiptoeing around the stars' examines how our perceptions of others can set them apart as “aliens”.Photo/Thanachai Bandasak

Nopchai’s ‘Tiptoeing around the stars’ examines how our perceptions of others can set them apart as “aliens”.Photo/Thanachai Bandasak

Chitti’s “Everyday Utensils”, created for a show in Paris, recalls his time at a Thai Buddhist retreat. Nation/Thanachai Pramarnpani

Chitti’s “Everyday Utensils”, created for a show in Paris, recalls his time at a Thai Buddhist retreat. Nation/Thanachai Pramarnpani

Wantanee’s 'The Conductor' has the man with the baton missing only an orchestra. Nation/Thanachai Pramarnpani

Wantanee’s ‘The Conductor’ has the man with the baton missing only an orchestra. Nation/Thanachai Pramarnpani

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Aspiring anthropologist Kamolwan Boonphokaew clears up some of the mystery behind conceptual art

Contemporary art meets venerable anthropology in the remarkable exhibition “Human AlieNation” at the Silpakorn Art Centre in central Bangkok. The curator is Kamolwan Boonphokaew, an anthropology PhD candidate at Thammasat University. The four participating Thai artists are all internationally acclaimed but have never before shown their work at the country’s leading art institute.

Kamolwan, who spent eight months preparing the exhibition, challenges viewers to take a fully documented anthropological look at 18 videos, sculptures and mixed-media works by Chitti Kasemkitvatana, Nopchai Ungkavatanapong, Nipan Oranniwesna and Wantanee Siripattananuntakul, and the results are often surprising.

While some of the pieces are site-specific – made for the art centre – others have earned praise abroad and yet are being seen in Thailand for the first time.

“For viewers who aren’t especially familiar with art, seeing contemporary art can be particularly difficult,” Kamolwan acknowledges. “But once you become used to thinking critically and reading the inherent messages, you can appreciate it more easily and understand the meanings, both tangible and intangible.”

The show’s theme is the current condition of Thai society amid social and political transition. Kamolwan notes that society has been deeply polarised ever since the 2006 coup that ousted Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra, with the opposite sides of the political divide regarding each other as “aliens”. We are a society of self-alienated aliens, the “alien nation” of the show’s punning title.

Even within the Thai art scene, she notes, there are groups of artists that are estranged from one another. She deliberately sought out “non-mainstream artists” to interpret the meaning of “alienation” in their own way.

They themselves became anthropologists, undertaking their own socio-cultural surveys, synthesising the results and creating visual cultural objects based on that.

Kamolwan takes her primary cues from Australian anthropologist Caroline Turner’s book “Art and Social Change”, which examines contemporary art across Asia.

“As an anthropologist in training, my approach has to be that of an outsider in an unfamiliar world,” Kamolwan writes in the show’s catalogue. “My interest in fine art stems from my realisation of its potential and the artist’s role in shaping society. Turner wrote that artists and their work can ‘transcend and perhaps even change society, as well as reflect its tragedies’.

“I think the visual arts and anthropology, despite the different working processes and approaches, share one fundamental commonality – their ability to reflect situations and movements that are occurring in society. Anthropologists typically explore small groups of humans and compare them with the larger society. Artists endeavour to reflect situations and how they impact individuals, and those reflections can be connected to society as well. They then transform the reflections through the form of either a tangible or intangible object.”

Whereas exhibitions of contemporary art usually let viewers draw their own interpretations, “Human AlieNation” is presented with copious explanatory material from Kamolwan’s research. She interviewed the artists at length about their methodology and inspirations and photographed them at work. “Interviewing and documenting are the key tools in anthropology studies,” she says.

Wantanee is screening three videos. “III” (made in 2014) depicts a farmer searching for something, his eyes watering because he’s peeling onions. “When she sings a voiceless song” (2015) has a middle-class woman waging a lonely fight for survival. “The Conductor” (2016) features an orchestra conductor without an orchestra.

The videos portray people of different social status “in accordance with the changing chapters of Thai history”, Kamolwan explains. They’re engaged in three different actions – searching, struggling and finding order in the dark.

“In both society and the art world there’s now an effort to revive the peer-group mechanism based on political ideology,” she says. “The act of social labelling, categorising and delineation as ‘friend’ or ‘enemy’ is experiencing a resurgence. The consequence is the promotion of the voice of the in-group to be heard louder, while that of all others is increasingly ignored.”

Nopchai is showing his signature neon sculptures. The installation “Re-touching the negatives” lets visitors play with film negatives that show people of all ages in silhouette when projected with the help of a “magic lantern”.

“For Nopchai, stories, statuses and perceptions towards surrounding objects (and possibly also people) are the results of social production,” the catalogue says. “Being an object, in his view, engages not only the matter of physicality, but also hidden significance.”

Chitti examines ordinary people who are disenfranchised from mainstream history, incorporating his personal experience at a northern monastery and references to cities, art institutes and history. He reinterprets historical events, some of which are widely dismissed has having never occurred.

“One Moment into Another: An Atmosphere Immersion” comprises three works on paper attached to the poster for the Silpakorn exhibition.

“Bringing an historical incident that happened in one place to another place (such as an art gallery) is a form of rewriting the history of people in the past,” Kamolwan explaines.

Nipan explores the actual space at the Silpakorn art centre with a travelogue that reflects on how art is created. His journey follows the route that a gallery janitor took back to her hometown in Myanmar for a visit, beginning on Koh Song in Ranong.

“These people are referred to as migrant labourers, foreign labourers, aliens and so on,” Kamolwan observes. “This status of ‘other’ derives not from their own self-definition but through the imposition of others’ definitions. By attempting to experience an existence on this border between two states, Nipan’s feelings of fear and of being estranged from the familiar have been evoked. This reflects the imprinted images of things.”

Chitti and Nipan’s complicated conceptual art is difficult to comprehend and they prefer that viewers make their own interpretations. That might be partiallywhy viewers feel alienated from modern art. What Kamolwan has done with her extensive documentation is to try and bridge the gap between artist and viewer.

It thus becomes easier to understand the running man in Nipan’s video “Signal” as representing a dialogue between the gallery space and its history. And what emerges from the interview with Chitti – one of the key shapers of contemporary art – provides insight into how the art form developed in Thailand.

SHOW ENDS ON SATURDAY

    • The exhibition “Human AlieNation” ends this Saturday with an academic discussion at 1.30pm involving Kamolwan, Silpakorn University art historian Thanavi Chotpradit and anthropology lecturers Boonlert Visetpricha and Rachod Satrawut from Thammasat and Prince of Songkla universities, respectively.
    • Fore information visit |www. art-centre.su.ac.th.

 

Stalking the real-life Pokemon

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http://www.nationmultimedia.com/life/Stalking-the-real-life-Pokemon-30293911.html

EXCLUSIVE INTERVIEW

Audrey Tan
The Straits Times August 29, 2016 1:00 am

Lifesciences undergraduate Sean Yap points out that numerous Pokemon Go characters were inspired by real plants and animals, many of which can be found in Singapore’s parks and nature reserves.

Lifesciences undergraduate Sean Yap points out that numerous Pokemon Go characters were inspired by real plants and animals, many of which can be found in Singapore’s parks and nature reserves.

Yap educates Singaporean gamers on biodiversity through his Facebook page, 'Real Life Pokemon of Singapore'.

Yap educates Singaporean gamers on biodiversity through his Facebook page, ‘Real Life Pokemon of Singapore’.

A player scouts for Pokemon outside the zoological garden. Singapore and Thailand were added to the Pokemon Go universe on August 6.

A player scouts for Pokemon outside the zoological garden. Singapore and Thailand were added to the Pokemon Go universe on August 6.

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Singaporean players raise their eyes from their phones to learn about nature

Like many Pokemon Go players, National University of Singapore life sciences undergraduate Sean Yap, 24, goes out as often as possible.

But, unlike the gamers whose eyes are glued to their phones in an effort to catch the virtual characters, Yap looks up and around – at plants, birds and especially insects. The insect researcher is now on a mission to get others to do the same and learn to appreciate biodiversity, and his strategy is to ride the current popularity of the mobile game.

He has produced a Facebook album – called Real Life Pokemon of Singapore – that shows the similarities between Pokemon characters and native plants and animals. The water Pokemon Staryu, for example, resembles the knobbly sea stars that dot Singapore’s shores, and the plant Pokemon Victreebel looks like the Raffles pitcher plant.

Yap’s comparisons include a tongue-in-cheek write-up about the native plant or animal.

He says, for instance: “Like Victreebel, pitcher plants are living toilet bowls, complete with a lid and a disgusting rim/seat – except they eat bugs. Some species of pitcher plants even have symbiotic, resistant insects that live in the liquid and feed on the drowned bugs, and the pitchers get the nutrients from their excrement, so they are actually toilet bowls.”

He points out that numerous Pokemon are based on real plants and animals, many of which can be found in Singapore. City dwellers rarely realise this, he says, and he hopes his project will enlighten them and prompt them to look out for these plants and animals.

“If Pokemon Go can be used as a marketing tool for shopping malls to attract customers, then it can probably do the same for science and biodiversity,” Yap says.

He wants to highlight the plight of wildlife, too.

For example, in writing about Sandslash, a Pokemon that resembles the critically endangered Sunda pangolin, which is native to Singapore, he says: “Unlike Sandslash, the pangolin’s large claws are not used for combat but for digging into ant or termite nests. And while Sandslash’s signature move, Defence Curl, may work against predators like tigers (before they went extinct here), humans can just pick them up.

“It is humans that make the pangolin such a rare Pokemon worldwide: Poaching is the No 1 threat to their existence.”

Adriane Lee, a 41-year-old project manager, says he never knew that real animals were the inspiration for Pokemon until he saw Yap’s album.

“Sean’s project is a refreshing take on educating people about local biodiversity, since Pokemon is the latest craze and it draws audiences normally not knowledgeable about or interested in nature to have a more intimate knowledge of the topic,” he says.

Nature groups such as the Herpetological Society of Singapore, which studies reptiles and amphibians, also plan to use Yap’s project at the Festival of Biodiversity educational fair taking place at the Botanic Gardens next weekend. “We want to show that Singapore has biodiversity that’s pretty cool too and that appreciating wildlife is just as fun and interesting as playing the game,” says the society’s co-founder, Sankar Ananthanarayanan.

Yap has so far matched about 40 of the 721 characters in the Pokemon universe with native flora and fauna. He hopes to do so for as many Pokemon as possible.

But unlike the Pokemon Go game, in which the aim is to catch them all, he stressed that handling and capturing wild animals in Singapore is illegal. “Don’t try to catch them,” he says. “Do observe and marvel from a respectful distance. You can join guided walks, many of which are free, for a better chance of seeing these real-life Pokemon.”

Although he’s been a fan of the Pokemon universe since he was a boy, Yap doesn’t play Pokemon Go. In fact he deleted the app barely four hours after he first downloaded it on the day of its launch.

“I realised I was walking in the forest and constantly checking my phone instead of looking out for wildlife,” he explains.

During a recent visit to Pasir Ris Park for a glimpse of a rare spotted wood owl, Yap noticed that many people who missed the majestic bird because they were busy catching Pokemon.

But getting people out in the open is a first step, he points out.

“Some people might not visit the parks in the first place and would completely miss the opportunity to see our native wildlife, so having them outside presents us the opportunity to reach out to them.”

 

The bio-politics of relationships

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http://www.nationmultimedia.com/life/The-bio-politics-of-relationships-30293902.html

STAGE PREVIEW

Pawit Mahasarinand
Special to The Nation August 29, 2016 1:00 am

Three members of B-Floor Theatre, an independent performer and two actors from Badisches Staatstheater Karlsruhe complete the cast of “Happy Hunting Ground”. Photo/Democrazy Theatre Studio

Three members of B-Floor Theatre, an independent performer and two actors from Badisches Staatstheater Karlsruhe complete the cast of “Happy Hunting Ground”. Photo/Democrazy Theatre Studio

A new German-Thai theatre collaboration is ready for its world premiere in Bangkok

Bangkok’s theatregoers will no doubt have noticed the absence of multi-award winning stage director and choreographer Thanapol “Dtam” Virulhakul, a core member of Democrazy Theatre Studio, from the stage in recent months. That’s because for the best part of a year he’s been working on a transnational project “Happy Hunting Ground” which, for the first time ever, is matching theatre companies from Thailand and Germany. And that’s on top of taking his “Hipster the King” to two festivals in Tokyo and Braunschweig this year.

“[German critic and playwright] Jurgen Berger mentioned his ongoing research for a performance at Badisches Staatstheater Karlsruhe on the topic of Thai-German personal relationships when he was visiting Bangkok Theatre Festival in late 2014,” says Dtam.

That conversion was revived a few months later when, thanks to support from the Goethe Institut and the host festival, his “Hipster the King” and “I am Thai”, was staged as part of the contemporary Thai theatre showcase at Festival Offene Welt in Ludwigshafen.

“People from the Munich headquarters of the institute got to watch my works and afterwards I was officially approached to join this project for which support had already been greenlighted by Goethe Institut. Meanwhile, Berger was continuing his research, interviewing not only Thai sex workers here but also Thai university students who had married German men and settled there and even Thai-German gay couples. The latter don’t make it to our performance though. Throughout this process, he’s been sending me his interview transcripts and I’ve been working with [German dramaturg] Sarah Israel and my assistant director Peerapol Kijruenpiromsuk.

“Initially, I was looking especially at differences in this topic. I was also thinking of post-colonialism and later on I started to look at these relationships as transnational space. For example, I regard those Thai women who marry German men and settle there as those who are seeking a better life in their marriage migration. And so in this transnational space, there is much more than sexual relationships and desires.

“Finally, I’ve found that bio-politics can explain these private relationships. In many cases, our lifestyles are determined by certain systems of power. For example, not all sex workers are doing this out of choice. Likewise, there are many other socio-economic factors, besides what’s obvious and known, why German men love visiting Thailand mainly for sex tourism.”

Dtam started turning this large amount of research information and analysis into performance last year, creating a “laboratory” at Democrazy. Once he’d settled on his cast – Jens Koch and Luis Quintana from Badisches Staatstheater Karlsruhe, Silpathorn artist Jarunun Phantachat, Dujdao Vadhanapakorn and Waywiree Ittianunkul of B-Floor Theatre and independent performer and choreographer Vidura Amranand – the development process moved to Karlsruhe. Rehearsals were held six days a week for four weeks and now everyone is in Bangkok, where they have been working for the last two weeks.

“In our ‘laboratory’, these two groups of people – German men and Thai women – are on the same mission and in the same timeframe, yet under different conditions. For example, even when they’re all office workers, different regulations apply. These don’t let the Germans work longer than a certain number of hours. I’m interested in how these conditions affect their behaviour and needs differently. I’ve found that when members of these two groups meet, they fulfil each other’s needs.”

On the other side of the coin, Jan Linders, Badisches Staatstheater Karlsruhe’s director of drama and another dramaturg for “Happy Hunting Ground”, explains why this work is scheduled to open his theatre’s season.

“Our season motto is ‘About myth and reality’, and ‘Happy Hunting Ground’ falls precisely between cliche and truth, not only of Thai-German relationships but also of women and men in general. Besides, the time between the seasons was the only time of the year in which the performers from Karlsruhe could come to Thailand to rehearse and perform for four weeks in a row. Like most German theatres, we perform in a system of ensemble and repertory, which means that an actor rehearses in the mornings and plays a different show each night. In this process, my two actors and myself are experiencing an art form unusual for German repertory actors: |performance with a focus on the body.”

BANGKOK, BANGSANG & Europe

– “Happy Hunting Ground” premieres at Chulalongkorn University’s Sodsai Pantoomkomol Centre for Dramatic Arts (BTS Siam station, Exit 6) this Thursday at 7:30pm, and continues through Saturday.

– Tickets are Bt600 (Bt300 for students), at (081) 441 5718 and (081) 559 7252.

– The performance will be at Burapha University on September

6-7; then have its European premiere in Karlsruhe from September 22-24, and Bern, Switzerland from September 29-October 1.

– Find out more at Facebook.com/DemocrazyStudio and http://www.Staatstheater.Karlsruhe.de.

Jukebox or soap box?

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http://www.nationmultimedia.com/life/Jukebox-or-soap-box-30293890.html

STAGE REVIEW

Pawit Mahasarinand
Special to The Nation August 29, 2016 1:00 am

Lovebirds Fon (3rd left, Neungthida Sophon) and Phat (4th left, Napat

Lovebirds Fon (3rd left, Neungthida Sophon) and Phat (4th left, Napat

The revival of “Lom Haichai: The Musical” does nothing to rejuvenate the old story and the flawed script

When will we get to watch a real jukebox musical that offers a new interpretation of songs we know and love, like, for example, we enjoyed in “Mamma Mia”?

Aspiring director Santi Torwiwat was highly acclaimed for his professional debut “Wedding Day: The Musical” last year; but 10 minutes into Scenario’s revival production of “Lom Haichai: The Musical”, made a few very unprofessional mistakes. First, he had his conductor Piti Kayoonpan milk the audience’s applause – as if the audience hadn’t noticed that the music ensemble were upstage, not in the orchestra pit and as if this was not going to be an entertaining performance. Then, he had his supporting actors, portraying waitresses in a bar called “Three Seasons” do some movements reminiscent of the 1990’s British music theatre “Stomp”. And when we looked carefully at the details of this bar, we saw the logo of another famous bar, which happened to be a sponsor of this musical. Too much commercial plug-in, and as a result, I have now stopped going to that famous bar.

The script, which was written by seven wordsmiths – another record – didn’t help the young director either. The lead character Phat revealed the main theme in his first monologue, that we should truly live every moment in our life, but in the end, as the script slightly went off track, we’ were supposed to learn how to “Pass the love forward.” And throughout the running time of two hours plus, we felt that the script, which is so plot-driven that we learn very little about the characters’ backgrounds, was trying any possible way to get to a right moment for another song by Boyd Kosiyabong to begin. And when it did, we didn’t hear the new interpretation that we were expecting – just a cover version performance of these songs we know and love. Entertaining and predictable this musical was; romantic and touching it was not.

Napat “Gun The Star” Injaieua portrayed film director Phat – in the original version seven years ago this character was an architect – who couldn’t speak from his heart to his girlfriend Fon until it was too late. His performance reminded me of that of another Scenario regular Sukrit “Bie The Star” Wisetkaew. He was concentrating more on the audience, instead of his scene partners. Neungthida “Noona” Sophon, after getting a chance to develop a more mature character a few months ago in another musical “Thiraracha”, was back in the same stereotype of helpless young woman. That said, her singing skills have significantly improved and many audience members now look faorward to watching her in another stage musical.

Completing the love triangle was celebrated pianist Saksit “Tor” Vejsupaporn, who’s making his theatre debut in this musical. It was clear that he enjoyed putting his fingers on the keys more than singing and acting, and as a result his character To, secret admirer of Fon, occasionally disappeared from our focus. And to complement To’s piano prowess, the set designer placed a piano inside Phat’s apartment even though neither he nor his girlfriend, was able to play it.

As the three leads had some flaws, the show was stolen effortlessly by veteran singer Thanaporn “Parn” Waekprayoon whose portrayal of Chan keenly balanced comedy and drama and was filled with sincerity and compassion.

The curtain call gave me a sense of a deja vu as I found myself having exactly the same thought as seven years ago.

I should have just listened to Boyd Kosiyabong’s double album “Million Ways to Love” again instead of spending time and money on “Lom Haichai: The Musical”.

MORE SHALLOW BREATHS

– “Lom Haichai: The Musical” continues this Friday to Sunday, and September 9 to 11. At Muangthai Rachadalai Theatre (MRT: Thailand Cultural Centre).

– Show time is 7.30pm with 2pm matinees on Saturday and Sunday.

– Tickets cost from Bt500 to

Bt 3,000, at ThaiTicketMajor. For more info, http://www.Rachadalai.com.

In bed with a stranger

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http://www.nationmultimedia.com/life/In-bed-with-a-stranger-30293883.html

STAGE REVIEW

Pawit Mahasarinand
Special to The Nation
Singapore August 29, 2016 1:00 am

Each audience member shared a bed with an actress and was told a heartfelt story. Photo/Chong Yew

Each audience member shared a bed with an actress and was told a heartfelt story. Photo/Chong Yew

Argentine director-artist Fernando Rubio’s “Everything by My Side” was staged at the Supreme Court Terrace on the fourth floor of the National Gallery at the opening of Sifa in Singapore. Photo/Chong Yew

Argentine director-artist Fernando Rubio’s “Everything by My Side” was staged at the Supreme Court Terrace on the fourth floor of the National Gallery at the opening of Sifa in Singapore. Photo/Chong Yew

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SIFA offers a unique theatregoing experience

Contemporary performance that’s not bound to any conventional venue can take you to an extraordinary place, physically as well as mentally. Such is the case with Argentine director, playwright, actor and visual artist Fernando Rubio’s “Everything by My Side”, which was staged at the Supreme Court Terrace on the fourth floor of the National Gallery over the opening weekend of Singapore International Festival of Arts (Sifa) 2016.

Each of the 10 actresses – one of them local and the others from the countries in which this work has been staged – lay on one side of a white bed. For their part, audience members were assigned bed numbers and told to study the instructions, one of which was that we should always remain silent from the moment we lay down next to the actress until the moment she said “I see you soon”. In the waiting area I spotted a blind woman being guided by her dog, and was pleased that unlike most other performances, this was one to be heard and felt, rather than watched. A staff member, having noticed that most audience members were not lying on their sides facing the actresses but on their backs, emphasised this instruction.

I closely followed the instructions and for about 10 minutes my bedmate whispered a personal story that was hers as much as mine – I could easily relate to and learn from it. Evidently a seasoned thespian, and notwithstanding a Latin American accent, her diction was always clear and the shift from staring up past my shoulder and looking straight into my eyes made the transition from the story’s past into the present clearer. While I wished the story were longer and I could savour this special moment more, it was indeed fulfilling. At the end I couldn’t help but say, “Thank you,” to which she didn’t reply but simply smiled, her eyes brimming with emotion. That was the parting and long-lasting image that still brings a smile to my face whenever I recall it.

That memorable experience also reminded me of US-born, UK-based performance artist Brian Lobel’s “You Have to Forgive Me, You Have to Forgive Me, You Have to Forgive Me”, which I attended last summer at Edinburgh Fringe. For that, I filled out a long questionnaire the evening before – it took me an hour to finish. Lobel, having studied my answers, would pick an appropriate episode of “Sex and the City” to watch together in its entirety on his laptop computer and discuss relationship issues with me, in pyjamas, in a bed set up in a corner of a theatre lobby, while onlookers watched the same episode on another TV screen and eavesdropped on our conversation.

This kind of experiential performance may not be commercially feasible – the box office would never cover the production cost – but it highlights the direct interaction between the audience and performer and the emphasis on each individual, and is a real experience. Even augmented reality games like “Pokemon Go” can’t match it. This doesn’t cause traffic accidents either – you’re in the most comfortable position, lying in bed, not walking on the sidewalk.

AND INTO WEEK 4

– Seen at Lincoln Centre Festival last month, Huang Ruo’s music theatre “Paradise Interrupted” opens this Wednesday.

– Opening a day later is choreographer Trajal Harrell’s “In the Mood for Frankie”. Harrell will also perform his solo “The Return of La Argentina” on Sunday.

– SIFA continues until September 17. Admission ranges from free to S$80 (20-per-cent discount

for students and seniors).

– For reservations and more details, go to http://www.SIFA.sg.

 

Oh, you beautiful BURGER!

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ศาสตร์เกษตรดินปุ๋ย : ขอบคุณแหล่งข้อมูล : หนังสือพิมพ์ The Nation

http://www.nationmultimedia.com/life/Oh-you-beautiful-BURGER!-30293760.html

SPECIAL FEATURE

MANTA KLANGBOONKRONG
THE NATION August 26, 2016 1:00 am

From left: Mother Trucker, Paper Butter and The Burger, Happy Fish and Jim's Burger

From left: Mother Trucker, Paper Butter and The Burger, Happy Fish and Jim’s Burger

This weekend’s American Food Fun & Family Fair is hunting for the perfect patty

VEGETARIANS will just have to bide their time this weekend while the rest of us in Bangkok relish that most popular of American exports, the burger. The second annual American Food Fun & Family Fair continues through Sunday at CentralWorld, and with it arrives the Great American Burger Competition.

Gifted cooks have been toiling all week to prepare exceptional burgers and side dishes in the hopes of winning a share of “old glory” and cash prizes.

Ten restaurants that specialise in perfect patties are vying for the title in the final round this afternoon. The judges will need well-honed taste buds. Spectators will need huge appetites.

“Last year’s fair and burger competition were a huge success and there’s been great demand for more,” says Sukanya Sirikeratikul, an agricultural marketing specialist at the US Embassy.

“The burger is always one of the first dishes that come to mind when we think of American food. It’s simple, but it can inspire a lot of creativity and also showcases the premium quality of American produce.”

The ready availability of high-quality ingredients everywhere in the world means the burger is no longer considered “junk food”, Sukanya says. It’s now a gourmet item, and – vegans, please skim ahead – can even be healthy. “It’s a fun, affordable food that everyone can enjoy.”

Chefs at the restaurants competing to create Thailand’s Great American Burger of 2016 and its side dishes have been required to use specific ingredients. On the list were apples from Washington (the robust northwestern state, not the US capital), one or more of the 10 cuts of American frozen potatoes, at least one of the seven types of cheese produced in California and, of course, US beef.

The chefs can season the meat beforehand but are permitted no other pre-cooking measures. Once in front of the judges, each has two hours to whip up five sets of burgers and side dishes. Points are awarded for hygiene and safety, taste and texture, creativity and mise en place, which is a French term, oddly enough, that refers to how well they set up beforehand.

The winning burger earns its maker Bt20,000 and the best side dish Bt10,000.

Pat and Ice, the couple who run Paper Butter and the Burger on Phaholyothin Soi 5, have their eyes on the prize this time after coming in second last year to 25 Degrees, one of the restaurants at the Pullman Bangkok Hotel G.

“For us it’s all about creating an easygoing and homey vibe,” says Pat, who developed a love for “outdoor foods” like burgers and other barbecue favourites while living in Australia.

“A burger doesn’t need to be fancy, but the quality has to be there. And our simple-looking burger is made of the best-quality ingredients we can afford to use and served in a friendly, no-frills way.”

The “burger” at Paper Butter and the Burger costs just under Bt200 and is worth not only that but also putting up with the navigation hassles getting there. It’s grilled fresh next to your table and very hearty.

Among the choices, the Very Cheeseburger on a whole-wheat bun is pretty amazing – and filling, it must be mentioned. The thick, juicy patty swims in melted cheddar.

Another one, the Chiang Mai Spicy Burger, was the one that won second prize in the burger competition last year. The northern-style spices and herbs infusing the patty are guaranteed to make your eyes water.

Pat’s keeping mum about his strategy for this weekend, and sounds a little too modest when he allows that it involves “a similar approach to last year”.

Also back for another try in the contest is Mother Trucker, which runs a fleet of roving food trucks and is renowned for its remarkable sauce-making technique.

The original food trucks to hit Bangkok streets choose a location, toss around a few tables and chairs and serve just two types of burgers – beef (Bt180) and pork (Bt150). Both contain a crunchy onion ring, crispy bacon, cheese, rocket leaves and 150 grams of all-natural meat that’s succulent and slightly smoky. But the secret weapon is the savoury and creamy Thousand Islands sauce that’s given an extra twist.

“Burgers tend to be fatty and heavy and you need something to cut the grease – that’s why we came up with this sauce, to balance all the flavours,” explains co-owner Mong.

” The portions are generous because we want to give value for money, but we don’t compromise on quality. We use a lot of local ingredients to control the cost, but they’re always the freshest we can find.”

New to the competition this year is Jim’s Burger, a two-year-old operation that has three branches in Bangkok and one in Pattaya, each with its own theme, ranging from a street-basketball court to a mock prison.

At the outlet in Yotse, set up to mimic a library, co-owner Maew says the plan is to impress the judges with playfulness, a nod to health and good old American flair.

“The highlight at Jim’s Burger is the bun – original buttermilk, charcoal, spinach and whole-wheat buns, all homemade,” says Maew, who spent a year in Connecticut in the US flipping burgers at both junk-food joints and gourmet restaurants. He came away determined to craft his own burgers. Now, he and his partners are thinking of actually opening a branch in the States.

Priced from Bt180 to Bt360, the choices include the Super BLT Pork Burger, US Kentucky Chicken Burger, the super-sized Apocalypse and, yes, Jim’s Burger. The sandwich that gave the chain its name has a beef patty that’s lean, neat and hearty, perfectly seasoned and expertly charred so it retains the juiciness.

It’s joined on one of those terrific buns by fragrant fried onions and a miniature gherkin, making every bite a little bit of Heaven for burger lovers.

“I’m still developing the recipe for the competition,” Maew says, “but it will be based on our signature Jim’s Burger. As for the side dishes, get ready for some seriously ass-kicking ideas.”

Another contest rookie is Happy Fish Bar & Bistro, located at Asiatique, which has recently gained its own legions of admirers thanks to its massive beef and lamb burgers. The spacious riverfront restaurant has an “underwater world” theme with colourful, cartoon-like marine creatures blowing bubbles in every corner.

While the decor is light-hearted, the Bt320 burgers cannot be taken lightly. Presented with fries on the side, the meat is seasoned with only salt and pepper, grilled over an open fire and popped onto a homemade bun.

“Most people don’t think of lamb as a meat for burgers,” says Apple, the chef and head of marketing. “But lamb is great for grilling and its slight gaminess can be tantalising when combined with the other ingredients in the burger. You’d be surprised how many people who don’t normally like lamb have fallen in love with our lamb burger.”

Also in the running at the Great American Burger Competition are defending champion 25 Degrees, Daniel Thaiger, Smashed Burgers, Full Moon Cafe, Lobster Burger and Hashtag Foodtruck. Regardless of who wins, they’ll all be serving their goodies throughout the three days of the fair.

The exposition has more than 50 booths offering gourmet products from the US. Yogurt Land, Emack & Bolio’s, dairy products from the California Milk Advisory Board, some sensational almonds and other nuts, Red Delicious and Granny Smith apples and a whole gamut of craft beers are among the items ready for sampling and on sale.

  • The second annual American Food Fun & Family Fair continues through Sunday in Square C at CentralWorld Plaza, daily from 1pm to 10pm.
  • There’s no admission charge.
  • The finals of the Great American Burger Competition start at 1.30pm today.

On tap and in the BOTTLE

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ศาสตร์เกษตรดินปุ๋ย : ขอบคุณแหล่งข้อมูล : หนังสือพิมพ์ The Nation

http://www.nationmultimedia.com/life/On-tap-and-in-the-BOTTLE-30293759.html

AFTER DARK

MANTA KLANGBOONRKRONG
THE NATION August 26, 2016 1:00 am

Sun-dried bananas and chilli paste are just some of the unusual ingredients that go into local craft beers

SIX LOCALLY brewed suds are to be crowned “leaders of the pack”, when the country’s first craft beer competition takes place next weekend.

Fifty local craft beer brands covering more than 100 labels will be competing to win one (or more) of the six categories in the first Siamese Craft Beer competition, which is being judged by a Beer Judge Certification Programme-certified panel.

“We craft beer makers are like wolves that have been running wild for a while. It’s time we had a leader,” says Pipattanaphon “Pieak” Pumpo, one of the competition organisers and administrator of the “Craft Brewery is Not a Crime” Facebook page.

“We’ve had many more local brands emerging over the last couple of years and many drinkers have shifted from imported craft beers to the ones made locally. At some point they wonder if the locally made craft beer is safe, has good quality and if there’s any standard to it. This competition should showcase the standard of the beers we’ve made based on the guidelines by BJCP, which is an international organisation specialising in judging beers.”

The competition is divided into six categories -wheat ale and wheat beer, pale ale, India pale ale, amber, stout and porter and an “open category”, which includes mixed styles or beers using experimental ingredients. The winners will be chosen over the course of two days at bar Let The Boy Die and project space Cho Why next Friday and Saturday.

“The scene has been dominated by two big beer brands for so long, so when craft beers were first imported to Thailand, consumers were really excited to try new things, though the prices are higher. Soon enough many of us realised that we could brew our own beers, in our own styles, and it’s much easier now than a couple of years back,” Pieak says.

He adds that almost everything has to be imported to make a craft beer, with water the only locally available ingredient.

“A few years back I had to ask my brother in the US to ship hops and other ingredients to me. It was very expensive. Now you have several suppliers, which makes it more doable. Today we’re seeing brews with sun-dried banana and chilli paste. Our own craft beer characters are definitely being developed.”

The only problem is brewing craft beer is not legal in Thailand. “There is a permit for microbreweries that allows you to sell, unbottled, on premises only, and a permit for an industrial scale but nothing in between,” Pieak says.

“So craft beer in Thailand is still in a grey area. Countries like Japan, Taiwan and even Vietnam have made quite an economy out of it. We know it’s illegal, but as long as there are people drinking it, we’ll make it.”

For updates on local craft beer community, check out “Craft Brewery is Not a Crime” on Facebook.

The competition takes place next Friday at Let The Boy Die on Luang Road, and next Saturday at Cho Why on Soi Nana near Yaowarat.