进行中的工程——观《对峙》
文：张英豪
“工程进行中，不便之处敬请原谅。”
牌子上，戴着黄色头盔的新雅狮子露出招牌笑容。
《对峙》以这样一个画面终结，不禁引人省思：这里的工程隐喻着什么？
《对峙》是必要剧场搬离驻扎近20年的马林百列场地的最后一部作品，也是戏剧盒与必要剧场联合呈献的三部曲最终章。三部曲由两团艺术总监郭庆亮与陈崇敬携手执导，分别为《宣言》（2016年）、《贱民》（2018年）与《对峙》（2022年），皆在探讨个人与政治之间不可分割的关系。不过相较于《宣言》和《贱民》聚焦于狭义的政治（国家制度及政策）上，《对峙》却把焦点放在一对女同性恋情侣的爱情故事上，通过广义的政治（人与人之间的权利关系），探讨狭义政治对个人的压迫。
《对峙》叙述了华族女子Jackie（吴悦娟饰）与马来女子Ram（角色原名Ramlah，而Ram这个名字是她因性别认同而自我选择的名字；Siti Khalijah Zainal饰）两名同性恋者横跨2012年至2029年的情感纠葛。两人在2012年相互爱恋，一起成立了心中理想的剧团“零剧团”，主要为儿童和青少年演出，偶尔也呈现具批判性的剧作。两人一度谈婚论嫁，但是后来这对恋人因为立场上的分歧——Ram不满新加坡政府在政策上对彩虹群体的不承认，Jackie却安于政府也不否认的现状中，两人最终分手，Ram远赴允许同婚的纽西兰。
《对峙》的故事看似简单，但是金牌编剧哈里斯·沙玛在叙事结构上下足了功夫，除了招牌的跳叙手法，还叠加了丰富的叙事层次——首先是《对峙》的政治性框架，以新加坡2011年大选开场，间中穿插2015年大选、2020年大选，最终以想象的2029年大选作结，为这个爱情故事提供了背景与语境；其次是零剧团及其排演剧目的后设性质，零剧团的剧团处境无疑带有戏剧盒与必要剧场的影子，其排演剧目也探讨了性别认同的议题；再来是Ram好友Adam（陈国联饰）以这对情侣为主角拍摄的纪录片，通过投影的方式在剧场中呈现，是交代这对情侣的爱情故事的重要媒介；最后还有零剧团潜藏的鬼“村上春树”，以及村上春树的著作《1Q84》有关平行世界的互文性。
有论者认为多元的议题、打乱的叙事、复杂的结构，造成观赏《对峙》的障碍——那观众可以采取什么策略来跨越障碍，解读其中的丰富意涵呢？
剧名《对峙》与场刊中《导演的话》提供给了我们串联这些元素的线索——《对峙》通过人物之间、观念之间的对峙，企图打破单一稳定、二元对立的思维范式。我们需要看清我们对事物的界定其实都是建构出来的，而为了方便理解，这些社会建构往往都采取二元化的方式对事物粗暴简单地分门别类，忽略了其中的流动性与差异性。只有当我们能在认知与情感上理解并包容这些流动性与差异性，我们的社会才能真正地成为一个具多元性与包容性的社会。Jackie与Ram、Ram与Adam、Jackie与Jord（Jackie的弟弟；林俊宏饰）、Ram与Sab（Masturah Oli饰）这些人物之间的对峙，再现的何尝不是人性与事物的一体多面？
每个人物身份认同上的流动性也体现在零剧团的鬼这个细节中。剧评人梁海彬在他的剧评中就精辟地提出《对峙》中的人物在不同程度上都是“鬼”的解读——他们不得不隐藏自己的真性情，向外界显露适于社会规范的一面。而“鬼”会不会也隐喻着平行世界的另一个我、未来的另一种可能性？
叙事在进入想象的2022年后刻意变得模棱两可——安于现状的Jackie似乎在新加坡独自抑郁而终（Adam纪录片献给安息的Jackie），又似乎活到2029年，等待Ram的归来；Ram成功移民理想国度纽西兰，却在结婚时遭到宗教阻碍，最后回归新加坡。两人会破镜重圆吗？2029年新加坡大选，执政党与在野党各占一半的席位，又会鹿死谁手？
《对峙》在这些悬念与开放式结局中，迎来新雅狮子的招牌笑容。进行中的工程透露着一丝希望及可能性——建立一个真正具多元性与包容性的社会的希望及可能性。工程尚未成功，同志仍需努力。不过，新雅狮子的笑容怎么愈看愈像老大哥的笑容？
关于演出：2022年3月17日，8PM，必要剧场黑箱剧场，戏剧盒 + 必要剧场 联合呈现
Work in Progress—Reviewing Opposition
Theatre Review by Teo Eng Hao
Translated from Chinese to English by Melissa Lim
“Work in progress. Sorry for the
inconvenience.” Singa the lion, clad in a yellow helmet, flashes its signature
smile on the signage.
The play Opposition ends with this
final image, and one cannot help but wonder: what ‘work’ is it alluding to?
Opposition is
the final play to be staged at The Necessary Stage (TNS) Black Box, the
company’s home at Marine Parade for the last 20 odd years. The production also
caps the trilogy of collaborations between TNS and Drama Box. Co-directed by
the companies’ respective Artistic Directors Alvin Tan and Kok Heng Leun, the
three productions—namely Manifesto (2016), Underclass (2018) and
now Opposition (2022)—investigated the inextricable relationships
between people and politics. However, unlike Manifesto and Underclass
which focused on a narrower perspective of politics (in terms of
institutions and policies), Opposition centres its spotlight on the love
story between two lesbians, and through a broader view of politics—that of
power relations between individuals—it seeks to explore how the circumscriptions
of politics oppress the individual.
Opposition spans
the years 2012 to 2029 and depicts the complicated liaison between a Chinese
woman named Jackie (played by Goh Guat Kian) and a Malay woman, Ram (originally
Ramlah, but the character chooses to identify herself by the name Ram, played
by Siti Khalijah Zainal). Both characters fell in love in 2012 and set up Zero
Theatre, the theatre company of their dreams. Zero Theatre’s mainstay was in
presenting children and youth theatre, though occasionally it would veer into
works that are more critical. The pair discuss their union and marriage, but
because of differences in their viewpoints—Ram is unhappy by the Singapore
government’s lack of legal recognition of the LGBTQ+ community, whereas Jackie
has reconciled herself with the state’s stance—they eventually separate. Ram
then migrates to New Zealand, where same-sex marriage is allowed.
The narrative of Opposition may seem
simple on the outset, but under the masterful hands of playwright Haresh
Sharma, it unravels itself through leaps through space and time, and reveals
layer upon layer of rich subtexts. For one, Opposition delineates its
setting and time frame for the romance by way of our national elections:
opening with 2011’s General Elections, then with 2015 and 2020’s elections
marking the midpoint, and capped by the imaginary elections of 2029. For
another, Zero Theatre and its process of rehearsing for a play-within-a-play is
undoubtedly allegorical; the former seems to carry shades of TNS and Drama
Box’s own history, and the latter—also a work that delves into LGBTQ+
themes—references (wittingly or otherwise) Opposition itself. Intertwined
with this is the narrative thread surrounding Ram and her good friend Adam
(played by Tan Guo Lian Sutton), the latter who is filming a documentary
centred around the couple. Snippets of his documentary and its rushes are
presented via multimedia within the play, and this plays a key role in fleshing
out the relationship between Ram and Jackie. Lastly, there is also mention of a
ghost named “Murakami” residing within Zero Theatre, as well as the author
Haruki Murakami’s work 1Q84, which itself deals with parallel
worlds—again, providing intertextuality with Opposition to be
deciphered.
To some, the multiplicity of issues to be
grappled with, convoluted narrative style and stylistic complexity could pose
obstacles to their viewing of Opposition. So, what strategies can the
audience adopt to overcome them, to interpret and appreciate the multi-layered richness
of the play?
Rupturing the
binary paradigm
The title of the play,
Opposition, as well as the co-directors’ message found within the play’s
programme offer us clues as to how we can connect its myriad elements. Though
the confrontations between the characters and perspectives, Opposition attempts
to rupture the binary paradigm, which presents the world as a stable,
black-or-white one. We need to become acutely aware that our definitions of
things are actually constructed. To facilitate understanding, these social
constructs are often crudely and simply presented as binaries, thereby
neglecting the spectrum of fluidity and difference in between. It is only when
we understand and embrace the fluidity and difference on both cognitive and
emotional levels that our society can truly become diverse and inclusive. The
confrontations between Jackie and Ram, Ram and Adam, Jackie and Jord (Jackie’s
brother, played by Joshua Lim), and Ram and Sab (played by Masturah Oli)—are
they not representative of how multifaceted humanity and things are?
Similarly, the
fluidity of each character’s identity is reflected within the notion of a ghost
within Zero Theatre. In his review of Opposition, critic Neo Hai Bin
offers the interpretation that the characters in the play are all “ghosts” in
their own rights—they have to conceal their true nature and can only present a
side of them that sits well with social norms. Could it also be that the idea
of a “ghost” is also a symbol of another “me” in a parallel world, or another
possible future?
As the narrative moves
into an imaginary 2022, it deliberately becomes ambiguous. Jackie, who had
accepted the status quo, appears to have died alone due to depression (Adam’s
documentary is dedicated in memory of Jackie). Yet in 2029, she seems to be
very much alive and awaiting the return of Ram. Ram successfully migrates to
New Zealand, but at the point of marriage, she grapples with her religion and
the obstacles it poses; she eventually returns to Singapore. Will Jackie and
Ram reunite? The results of the 2029 Singapore General Elections sees the
ruling party and opposition party each take 50% of the seats. Who will
eventually emerge as the victor?
In the midst of Opposition’s
tensions and open-ended finale, we are greeted by Singa the lion’s
signature smile. The work in progress reveals a sliver of hope and possibility:
that of a truly diverse and inclusive society. Success is some ways away, and
the LGBTQ+ community still needs to persevere. Yet, why does Singa the lion’s
smile look increasingly like that of Big Brother’s?
Performance watched: 17 March 2022, 8pm at The Necessary Stage Black Box.
Co-presented by Drama Box and The Necessary Stage
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