Workers who keep arts venues ticking

SINGAPORE - When the curtain rises, what the audience usually sees is what happens on stage - slick music, perfect scene changes and impeccable lighting.

What is out of sight and out of mind is the hard work behind the scenes to keep arts venues in tip-top shape.

The workers who keep productions running are the backbone of any show, though they often do not get as much credit as they deserve.

Lisabel Ting talks to four people who are familiar fixtures at performance spaces.

Clipping microphone on for Lee Kuan Yew

Idwan Sa'at, 41,

Assistant director of productions and operations at The Old Parliament House

He has more than 10 years of experience working at The Old Parliament House.

But Mr Idwan Sa'at's most memorable experience lasted less than five minutes. When then Minister Mentor Lee Kuan Yew attended the launch of the book Men In White there in 2009, Mr Idwan was tasked to attach the wireless microphone to his collar.

"Oh, it was a challenge," he recalls. "It was like 'Wah, the person who created Singapore is standing in front of me'."

He was so anxious about the task that he bungled his first attempt. "I was very, very nervous. I was shivering and I tried to clip the mic on, but could not clip."

Working at The Old Parliament House has also allowed him to brush shoulders with other dignitaries, including Emperor Akihito of Japan and Britain's Prince Andrew.

When he started work there in 2003, he never imagined that he would be meeting such dignitaries.

He got the job because of Mr Colin Goh, chief executive officer of The Old Parliament House.

Mr Goh was general manager of Chijmes, where Mr Idwan worked, and Mr Idwan moved with him.

Mr Goh says: "I have known Idwan since 1998, first as a swinging bachelor, then a love-struck married man and now as a committed father of seven wonderful children.

"His highly rated work has been exemplary and he was instrumental in rallying his colleagues in getting The Arts House renovated and opened in just six weeks in March 2004."

Mr Idwan works from about 9am to 9 or 10pm every weekday, and his daily job involves working with contractors, as well as helping to set up for shows and maintaining the building.

While he says that most of the people he meets on the job are wonderful, "some of them can be quite demanding".

"They really act like they're divas. We encounter that quite a lot and it can be quite difficult. But in the end, we just have to provide and we don't want them to complain."

Although he tactfully declined to name names, he cites occasions when groups have demanded equipment which The Old Parliament House does not have or asked for very quick turnaround times between shows.

Despite this, he says that he enjoys the sociable aspect of the job.

"My favourite part of the job is to meet people with different kinds of lives, different kinds of culture and different kinds of needs. Every day for me is a challenge, it is totally different."

Taking the lift with the PM

Yeo Han Kiang, 42,

Senior building specialist at the Singapore Conference Hall

Mr Yeo, who used to work in hotels and shopping centres as a building technician, says his current job handling the cleaning and security at the Singapore Conference Hall is a lot better.

"Shopping centres are the worst. The worst things that choked the toilets were men and women's underwear and even a Coke can. Over here, we seldom get that kind of problem," he says.

The 42-year-old began working for the Singapore Chinese Orchestra in 2001, just before the ensemble moved into the Singapore Conference Hall.

He says that while his work now is less messy, it presents a different kind of challenge as he has to handle highsecurity events as well as visiting VIPs.

One of his most vivid memories was meeting Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong in 2004.

He recalls: "I was most nervous as I had to take the elevator with PM Lee. He was attending a fund-raiser here and needed to take the lift to level three.

"At the beginning, no one knew how to operate this lift and I was the only one who knew how to do it. I had to dress very smartly and I waited in the lift for at least 45 minutes, pressing the button to hold the door open."

How was the elevator ride?

"PM Lee didn't say anything much. When we see VIPs, we will just smile and PM Lee just smiled back," he says. Mr Yeo was also in charge of security at the concert hall during the state funeral for the late Deputy Prime Minister S. Rajaratnam in 2007.

The funeral was held at the Esplanade but the procession passed by the concert hall.

"This was the first time I was working with commandos," he says.

"Because there are a few roofs here, they asked me, 'Mr Yeo, can we jump down from here?' They were wondering how to jump through windows and break into the building.

"So this was the first time I had to think, which was the nearest way they could jump in using just a rope? Where could they tie a rope and which were the best angles for snipers, all that sort of thing."

He says that the Singapore Conference Hall is so high-security that giving out any information about the structure is frowned upon.

"I'm already telling you too much. We usually minimise telling outsiders about the structure and we cannot give the floorplans to anyone."

Security features which he did point out included long blinds which cover the glass windows, as well as the wall of the VIP holding room, which is made of a triple layer of brick.

Mr Terence Ho, 44, general manager of the Singapore Chinese Orchestra, which manages the Singapore Conference Hall, says: "Mr Yeo is a very dedicated and committed building specialist.

It's not easy to maintain the hardware, and to take care of the musicians and the artists, and the building which is also quite large.

"His role is a very challenging one. It's almost like he's on call 24/7 and it's really not easy to find someone like that."

Catching bands at the Esplanade

Noor Faizal, 34,

Production co-ordinator at the Esplanade

Working at the Esplanade lets Mr Noor do what he loves most - listening to awesome music.

The 34-year-old's love of music began in secondary school.

"I started jamming with friends," says Mr Noor, who plays the bass guitar. "I listened to metal, ska punk and grunge."

He worked for two years in a jamming studio as a caretaker after national service and helped to set up gigs as a freelancer.

He applied to the Esplanade before it officially opened in 2002 and began work in April that year.

"I get to see so many shows, from Chinese opera to punk rock to ballet," he says.

"As I grow older, my tastes have changed and I also learnt to appreciate different genres of music."

His job entails coordinating performers and his technical crew, so that the latter understand what the artists require, as well as making sure all the technical aspects of the show run smoothly.

He works from about 8.30am to 6pm on regular days when there are no events, and when there are shows, he can work from about 9am to 11pm.

The best part of the job is seeing his favourite bands perform live.

"You learn a lot as you watch them and see how they do it so well," he says.

Memorable shows for him include Scottish post-rock band Mogwai in 2009, where he was a venue stage manager, and Tokyo Ska Paradise Orchestra in 2007, where he was a standby staging crew.

He is also a fan of Baybeats, the Esplanade's annual three-day alternative music festival.

He likes it as "it gives local groups a place to perform and I love to soak in the atmosphere".

His other favourite series is Playtime, a children's theatre programme.

He and his wife, a 32-year-old library officer, do not have children but he says: "I love to see the kids go wild when they see the magic of the theatre." He is thankful that his job allows him to do what he is passionate about.

"A lot of things are going on at the Esplanade every day. That's what keeps me going."

Substation's fearsome caretaker holds many secrets

Chua Ng Ger, 69,

Duty officer at The Substation

Any artist who has worked at The Substation will know duty officer Chua Ng Ger.

The jovial 69-year-old, who has been taking care of the building and locking up at night for the past 21 years, has a reputation for being a no-nonsense character.

Showing what she usually does when artists rehearse late into the night, she makes a T-shape with her hands.

She says: "This means 'time to close'. Sometimes I'll say, 'Go home, go home. If you don't go home, I'll lock you up'. I can be very serious and fierce."

The Substation artistic director Noor Effendy Ibrahim, 40, says: "She is an interesting character. You either love her or you get annoyed with her commitment to her role as caretaker."

Mrs Chua breaks into a cheeky smile when asked about her fearsome image. "No lah, bluff bluff only.

Aunty 'hen wan pi de' (Mandarin for very playful), very naughty," she says.

The former factory worker joined The Substation in 1993 and has seen it grow over the past two decades.

She works from 6 to 10pm on weekdays, and on weekends, depending on what events are going on.

The widow with two children in their 30s says that when she first joined, "the place was very old and was leaking water like an attap house".

"When it rained, the place would be flooded. The gallery would flood, the theatre would leak water," she recalls.

"Sometimes in the afternoon, there would be blackouts and no light. It happened quite a bit. When it rained, got problem, and when there was lightning, it would set off the fire alarm."

She says that while the building is better maintained now, attendance at shows is not what it used to be.

"It was very crowded in 1993 but it is not as crowded now. However, the experience of coming to a show is quite good now."

Having seen so many shows over the years, she says her favourites are musicals and dances.

"Those are quite nice. I don't understand some of the other shows but I can understand quite a bit for some of the others."

Effendy adds: "One thing I know for sure is that Mrs Chua loves The Substation and she holds many secrets.

"And she takes her job of looking after The Substation seriously. Personally, I hold her in deep respect."

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