Archipelago!

Join Moonshadow Stories and friends for an evening of enchantment! Amidst the evocative atmosphere of Singapore's oldest church, listen to stories and music from Singapore and the Indo-Malayan archipelago and be transported back to a different era...

 

As modern Singapore commemorates its 40th Anniversary this year, let's not just celebrate our present-day achievements, but also take the opportunity to re-discover the richness of our folklore and culture. Archipelago!: Southeast Asian Island Stories and Music is an open invitation to one and all from the age of twelve upwards.

 

Featured Storytellers

Kamini Ramachandran & Verena Tay

 

Guest Storytellers:

Kiran Shah & Sheila Wee

 

Guest Musicians:

Thomas Manhart of artyfakt

& members of the NUS Singa Nglaras Gamelan Ensemble

(NUS Centre for the Arts)

 

Order of Stories and Music

1. Song: Daget (Mek, Irian Jaya)

2. The Magic Crocodile (Irian Jaya): Retold by Kamini

How a magic crocodile helped Tua and his family survive a great flood and prosper.

3. The Rivals (Sejarah Melayu): Retold by Verena

The Majapahit empire was a major obstacle in Singapura's rise as a rich city during the fourteenth century. This story recounts how the second and fifth Rajas of Singapura reacted differently towards the Majaphit threat, thereby affecting the city's survival.

4. Music: Khangkhao Kin Kluai  (Thailand) - Ranaat Eek Instrumental Solo by Dr Jan Mrazek

5.  Sang Kancil  (Indonesia): Retold by Kiran

Sang Kancil, the small mousedeer well known in Indonesian and Malaysian folklore as a trickster figure, uses his ingenuity to scare the King of the Tigers and survive.

6. Mahsuri (Langkawi): Retold by Kamini

When the beautiful Mahsuri is wrongfully accused of adultery, she curses the island of Langkawi for seven generations.

7. Music: Mugi Rahayu (Indonesia) - Javanese Gamelan

BREAK

Order of Stories and Music

8. Music: Moncer (Indonesia) - Javanese Gamelan

9. Kbo  Iwo (Bali): Retold by Verena

When Kbo Iwo, a giant, became a threat to the people of Bali, they subdued him, and in the process, created Lake Batur, which today forms the source of many of Bali's rivers.

10. Raja  Suran (Sejarah Melayu): Retold by Sheila 

The story of Raja Suran, the Indian ruler who dreamt of conquering China, is a combination of legend and myth that takes in a whole sweep of Asia, but is also intimately concerned with the earliest history of Singapore.

11. The First Shaman (Jah Hut/Orang Asli, Pahang): Retold by Kamini

Bongsu, a young boy, is the 'chosen one' who goes on a special spiritual journey and becomes the first shaman or 'puyang' of the Jah Hut people, able to fight the 'bes', or spirits, that cause disease and suffering among his people.

12. The Strong Man of Singapura (Sejarah Melayu): Retold by Verena

How Badang, a humble slave, becomes the strongest man alive and fulfils his potential as a war chief of the third Raja of Singapura

13. Music: Ricik-ricik  (Indonesia) - Javanese Gamelan

THE END