In 1943, the Japanese film 'The Tiger of Malaya' was released. Based on the life story of Tani Yutaka, a Japanese man who lived on the east coast of Malaya, the film portrayed him as a patriotic agent who liberated the Malay natives from British imperialists and Chinese capitalists.
Now, more than 70 years later, a group of actors are going to reenact scenes from the film. Real Malay actors will replace the 'brown face' Japanese actors in the original. Chinese actors will play antagonists who are 'less evil'. A Japanese actor will try to find a space of performance between the wartime propaganda classifications of heroes, villains and victims.
As they comically attempt to 'correct' history, they discover how their identities are sustained not by the accuracies of history but the stubbornness of myths.
Playwright: Alfian Sa'at
Director: Mohd Fared Jainal
Dramaturg & Translator: Shawn Chua
Cast: Farez Najid, Siti Khalijah Zainal, Rei Poh, Yuya Tanaka, Rei Kitagawa
Lighting Designer: Adrian Tan
Sound Designer: James Lye
Multimedia Designer: Eric Lee
Set & Collateral Designer: Shawn Chua
Producer: Shaza Ishak & Munah Bagharib
Marketing Manager: Erny Melissa
Production Manager: Khairina Khalid
Stage Manager: Elnie S. Mashari
Technical Manager: Norisham Osman
Technical Assistant: Uzair Daud
Surtitlist: Syarifah Azari
Production Assistant: Syania Shaharuddin
Production Archival: The Video Smith
Crew: Qaisarah Anisah Binte Mohamad Raffie, Sri Anum Wahyuni Binte Zainal Abidin, Navindran S/O Mahindran, Muhammad Sarni Bin Rakib
(Source: Synopsis from Teater Ekamatra Website and Credits from Teater Ekamatra Programme)
