Offbeat Performing Arts subjects in schools help students beat inhibitions - Susan Lankester

Reality check: What's Macbeth got to do with Mathematics or Science? Or drama, music, visual art for that matter? Everything, it would appear.

It is a known fact that academic institutions around the world allow students to acquire some of these skills, which is essential for the development among young children including academic and social.

In the early stage of education, the Performing Arts play a significant role as learning can be enjoyable through the Arts.

When appropriately managed, the Performing Arts are an excellent means where young minds, in their early stage of schooling, can explore and express their feelings.

Rightfully so, as Performing Arts including dance, drama and music are disciplines of the arts through which young children form opinions and explore ideas about the known and unknown world.

On Astro AWANI's Sembang Seni segment aired on Sunday, Malaysian theatre mavericks, Datuk Faridah Merican and Joe Hasham have one thing in their minds: to integrate Performing Arts as a syllabus in national schools in nurturing the young minds to become creative and socially-competent.

Founder and Director of Catwoman Productions Susan Lankester said she is as instrumental as the iconic duo in integrating theatre as a syllabus in schools. What's paramount, she said is to have trained teachers who are equipped with proper skills and knowledge to train their pupils.

AWANI: What is your opinion on the idea of implementing Performing Arts as a syllabus in national schools?

Susan: We need good teachers. I think teachers can be trained, but for now, we don't have enough teachers. We have learned through the years of doing our productions, working with other people and we picked up things along the way. We have created our own style and teach whoever on-board in our productions like what Datin Seri Tiara Jacquelina does in creating her own syllabus (at the Enfiniti Academy. Likewise with the Kuala Lumpur Performing Arts Centre (KLPac), they have theirs as well and so it Aswara which has their own, too.

But having the right teachers are important for Performing Arts syllabus because you need to instill the right kind of attitude and expectations. It's not an everyday job, it is a job that in this day and age is seen as a hobby or a passion, but it won't pay the bills. You will still need a second job, unfortunately. We are still not big enough, we're not like Singapore, yet.

AWANI: Do we lack of Performing Arts teachers in this country?

Susan: I really don't know what we have out there besides those institutions (KLPac, Enfiniti and Aswara) I just mentioned. There could be more.

I think the Performing Arts is just now being highlighted in the past couple of years and prior to that the theatre industry is still tiny, the theatre audiences are small compared to film audiences. We need to increase that.

Just look at our neighbour, Singapore, their support of the Performing Arts in theatre is huge, the audience is huge. Here, we don't have the audience to support the performances.

The productions are full-scale productions but tickets sales are bad and at the end of the day, the performers are being paid little and for me, as an industry we need to improve on that. It's about Performing Arts and also it's about educating the audience.

AWANI: Do you think having this syllabus in schools can boost the performing arts scene in the country?

Susan: I agree. I think it's a great idea. When I was school, I wish I had that as a syllabus in Malaysia. Of course if you are studying overseas, you have that luxury. Here, it's not supported because it's not like we don't have the talent, we need the outlet and the more experience to actually tweak that talent within us.

AWANI: How will this help educating the audience?

Susan: I suppose once we instill the Performing Arts syllabus into schools everywhere around the nation, and it becomes a particular subject you have an option to take, I think parents will be more aware, and the general public will be more aware, and then I think that will obviously create an awareness towards productions and interest in what's going on in daily events.

AWANI: Is it too late to start now?

Susan: No. Nothing is too late, we need to always start. Because we still have many generation ahead of us, and if we keep saying "It's too late now," what about the rest? What about the kids? and the children's children. So we need to start now.

AWANI: Do you have any experience teaching the young?

Susan: I have experienced teaching the young, I even had experience teaching adults as well. It's the same thing, it's all about your attitude as a teacher because, at the end of the day, you're sharing what you have learnt.

I think anyone who signs up for a weekend course or enroll in a three months course obviously want to learn. You need to be able to at least, fill the gaps that they need to have that knowledge to be able to perform or they may end up being directors or scriptwriters or even producers, but they need a background.

AWANI: What are the benefits of these classes for the young, especially those aged between six and seven?

Susan: Well, for me when I was younger, I was very very shy little girl, and I still am, having the Performing Arts under my belt, and unfortunately I never studied Performing Arts, I learnt everuthing from scratch and I had incredible mentor so I as very lucky, Othman Hafsham as one of them.

Having Performing Arts to hold on to, it pushes you forward and you step out of your shell, to be able to perform.

Who you are behind the doors is irrelevant because when you're performing on stage or in front of the camera you become a character, and that gives you the strength to be able to become a convincable performer.

AWANI: Are we ready and getting the right support?

Susan: I don't think we have enough support, but we're ready. But, we don't have enough support.

AWANI: What kind of support?

Susan: Schools definitely have to get together and decide on this Performing Arts syllabus but at the same time, not all schools can afford it, that's for sure.

Performing Arts is a totally different thing, yes, all subjects are hugely important but I think where the Performing Arts is a one up thing, you're teaching kids especially the shy ones like myself to be able to unlock that door, that they hide behind to come out and put themselves out, and open up themselves to the world and be brave enough to be shot down and stand up and take it.

A lot of people who learn Performing Arts actually become really good at public speaking, you know. It's incredible what it can do because it gives you a space in yourself.

Performing Arts is not only acting, it's basically physicality as well, it teaches you physical movement, it teaches you vocals, warm ups. Physicality teaches you how to walk, stand, move, every intention of what you do, character, and other things.

Of course they will throw in - short script-writing courses as well, mini director courses and even being a producer like how do you plan a budget for a play, you know all that should be thrown in.

AWANI: What is your hope?

I hope for a better future for the Performing Arts because we do have a great talent, in the theatre industry which also crosses over to the film industry because we tend to borrow from everyone.

At the end of the day, we're all actors we cross over to theatre, to film, to TV. So in general, I just hope that, there will come a day we can actually say that, I'm a theatre actor, I'm a film actor and that's all I do, because I can survive on it.