You gotta fight for your right to Sarong Party: The MadHatter Project (Review)

The MadHatter Project's recent performance at Laselle celebrated the colonisation -- erm, I mean, the founding of Singapore, when Sir Thomas Stamford Bingley Raffles arrived on our shores 200 years ago. Creatively titled "Sarong Party", the band has pulled out all the stops to present an interesting take on our island nation's history. 

The performance was full of wit, humour, sexual innuendos, sarcasm and irony. Unfortunately, the nuances of the performance may have been lost on some, who were somehow adamant on singing their school song with pride and joy, or lauding the performance for what it isn't; too ignorant and unobservant to see past the superficial (even when it's quite in-your-face).

Food was provided outside before the show started. Each dish was pretentiously named after a coloniser, coupled with over-the-top descriptions. Once the trumpeter ushered us in, we were treated to a delightful play on words; some of my favourite lines from Scene 2 include lyrics such as having to "bite your mother tongue" in order to "raise your SES", and the famous quote that "poetry is a luxury that we can't afford" was also included.

The audience is urged to think about the colonial legacy left behind by the British and to question the "neo-colonial masquerade" known as the Singapore Bicentennial. The lead singer of the MadHatter Project read out hilarious responses from the audience about what colonialism has done for us and for Singapore while giving his own take on the matter. ("Without colonialism, we wouldn't have a chance to decolonise!") Should we let the statue of Raffles stand, when it is quite clear that the name 'Raffles' is no longer associated with the coloniser himself but rather, a brand that represents elitism?

The party was kicked up a notch with a catchy Mandarin song, Thai disco garlands, a mannequin (first with a superhero cape which was later turned into a sarong), some confetti, and dry ice. 'Gods and Plastic Plants' and 'The Long Arm of the Law' are two songs that I espcially liked. The former is a reference to the Botanic Gardens (a UNESCO World Heritage site, no less), Gardens by the Bay, and our garden city in general, while the latter refers to colonial laws that have shaped our society, and in particular, the controversial 377A.

Apart from some minor hiccups with the sound and lyrics, the show was a magnificent one which would definitely make our founding fathers proud. Kudos to the band, the chorus performers, and the backstage crew. If Sarong Party is restaged, I would invite more of my friends to attend this "party" with me. Hopefully, people would actually appear instead of purchasing and hogging free tickets but choosing to stay home; it was truly a shame to see so many empty seats when the show was supposedly 'sold out'.