The Weight of Silk on Skin is a one-man play, or what is also known as a ‘Long Form Monologue’. It is a unique and close collaboration between writer Huzir Sulaiman, actor Ivan Heng, and director Claire Wong. This new work was created especially for the Man Singapore Theatre Festival 2011, a festival committed to the development, production and promotion of contemporary Singapore Theatre.

Written especially for Ivan Heng, the Artistic Director of Wild Rice, performed in a bare and exposed open space, this solo performance proved an intimate expose of a man’s interior landscape, as he explored his own character, sharing his feelings, longings and regrets with the audience. Written in the format of a long poem, it involved director and actor working organically together to link thoughts and feelings in pursuit of authenticity and ownership. Reflecting principles of Noh theatre and echoing techniques of Sanford Meisner, the result was text and thoughts deeply possessed, and feelings purely distilled.

The Weight of Silk on Skin differs substantially from other one-person shows in that the central role does not required constant changing of character and narrative dynamics, as is common in Emily of Emerald Hill, also famously performed by Ivan Heng, and the acclaimed Shirley Valentine, I Am My Own Wife, Stretch of the Imagination, and Brief Lives. This is the dramatic portrait of John Au Yong, a modern Asian male who is put under Sulaiman’s microscope and peeled back, layer by layer, to the heart of his mystery.

(Synopsis and Theme)
John Au Yong is an arbiter of elegance at the end of the road, rewinding a life of cold beauty and harsh truths. His distractions are many: the erotic allure of women; neat whiskey in cut crystal; the matchless charms of a well-cut suit. But what happens when memories aren’t beautiful and style can’t conquer everything? And if he can’t regain lost time, can he still reclaim lost loves?

Sulaiman focuses on two main questions: What does it mean to be a man? And: what does it mean to love a woman in today’s world? He explores the evolution of the emotional and sexual behavior of the modern Asian male. He also wanted also to address questions of form in the theatre; and concentrated upon vibrancy of emotion, language and performance, in a highly literary style.

Lyrical, biting and powerful, The Weight of Silk on Skin is a timely meditation on the sensual pleasures and pain of a man’s life.

CAST
Performer ....................... Ivan Heng

PRODUCTION
Playwright ..................... Huzir Sulaiman
Director ..................... Claire Wong
Set Designers .................. Claire Wong, Ivan Heng,
Huzir Sulaiman
Lighting Designer .............. Lim Woan Wen
Costume Designer .............. Huzir Sulaiman
Festival Team Artistic Director .. Ivan Heng
Festival Team Dramaturg .......... Alfian Sa'at
Festival Team Producer ........... Tony Trickett
Production Manager ............... Koh Bee Bee
Production Co-ordinator .......... Phua Yun Yun
Stage Manager ........................... Elnie S. Mashari
Assistant Stage Manager/Props Mistress..... Nadia Noordin
Wardrobe Mistress ......................... Nurhidayah
Mahadi
Wardrobe Assistant ........................ Izzatul Fia Sumono
Assistant to Director/Stage Assistant ..... Fairuz Atiqah