Little Beng takes on Broadway

Little Beng takes on Broadway

Pint-sized Ian Lee behaves like any other primary school pupil.

The eight-year-old is bright-eyed, curious, giggly and loves hamming it up in front of the camera.

But he comes armed with a special language skill: He speaks perfect Hokkien and will be playing a miniature version of actor Sebastian Tan's alter ego, Broadway Beng.

Tan, 40, first performed with Ian in the Wild Rice pantomime Hansel & Gretel in December last year and was immediately intrigued when he found out that Ian could speak Hokkien.

Ian learnt the dialect from his grandparents, who converse with him in Hokkien.

From then on, Tan would speak to Ian in Hokkien whenever they bumped into each other. He says: "It's very rare nowadays that young children of his age can speak Hokkien."

The duo will be performing together at the Drama Centre Theatre from next Thursday at Tan's first full- length Broadway Beng show in three years. He had taken a break to gather new material and to keep the show fresh.

This fifth edition of the show will bring back its signature blend of stand-up comedy and Hokkien ditties as well as some short skits.

Tan earned the moniker of Broadway Beng from his background as a West End actor - he performed in Miss Saigon in 2004 - and also from his Singaporean roots as an "ah beng" from the heartland.

His revue, which grew from a tiny outfit at the DBS Arts Centre to a glitzy showcase at the Esplanade, also has a supporting cast of five "chio buus" (pretty women in Hokkien): actresses Denise Tan, Jacqueline Pereira, Judee Tan, Mina Ellen Kaye and Siti Khalijah.

This year, Broadway Beng will also feature tales from Tan's early life, including stories about his parents and relatives, hence Ian's presence on stage.

Tan says: "The first edition had intimate stories about myself, so we thought maybe we should bring them back. To hopefully try to get the essence, to talk about my childhood and how my beng-dom began."

He quips: "I realised I had quite a long childhood with a lot of tragic stories that I think can be used to comedic effect."

In the show's third edition, Tan used a puppet to act as a sort of "mini me". But there is nothing quite like having a real boy on stage.

Memorising his lines, however, has been no easy task for Ian. He giggles. "My father goes through my lines with me."

He pauses, then says in a loud whisper: "But he is Cantonese."

But the Nanyang Primary School pupil knows his way around the stage. He took drama classes with the arts company Act 3 when he was younger and also performed in front of thousands at this year's National Day Parade.

His mother, housewife Vivien Teo, 37, tells Life!: "He's vocal and quite an extrovert - and quite dramatic. We realised he likes to go on stage and perform. He's comfortable there and there's no fear."

Does he want to be an actor when he grows up? Ian pauses and shrugs: "I don't know yet."

Is he nervous about performing? This time, the response is immediate, accompanied by a confident grin: "No!"

Tan says: "It's a worry that dialects are dying. So, hopefully, by introducing Ian, it's a sign that there's hope for our lost roots."

corriet@sph.com.sg

Broadway Beng! Benging You Back To Basics
Where: Drama Centre Theatre, National Library Building Level 3
When: Next Thursday to Oct 27, Tuesdays to Thursdays, 8pm, Fridays, 8 and 10.30pm, Saturdays, 4 and 8pm, Sundays, 2 and 6pm
Admission: $15 to $77 from Sistic (call 6348-5555 or go to www.sistic.com.sg)


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