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Free Malaysia Today
05-07-2025
- Entertainment
- Free Malaysia Today
Tiara Jacquelina tells of financial toll in championing the arts in Malaysia
(From left) Kakiseni president and film director Low Ngai Yuen (moderator), classical dancer Ramli Ibrahim, producer Tiara Jacquelina and fashion designer Bernard Chandran at the arts forum organised by the Merdeka Award Trust. KUALA LUMPUR : Award-winning producer and director Tiara Jacquelina has opened up about the immense challenges of financing the arts in Malaysia after pouring her own money and energy into creating large-scale productions that championed Malaysian stories. Tiara, a driving force behind some of Malaysia's most iconic productions, described the pressure of justifying art in commercial terms as exhausting. The arts advocate told a forum here today that despite her commitment to national identity and cultural storytelling, she grew tired of constantly having to 'knock on doors' just to make a case for support. 'I did it all for the love of the arts, but I learned the hard way that passion alone isn't sustainable,' said the founder of the Enfiniti Academy of Musical Theatre and Performing Arts. At one point, Tiara secured RM1 million in sponsorship from a major corporate body. However, she said it was an amount that came with strings attached. She was expected to deliver up to three times in returns, alongside key performance indicators (KPIs), publicity deliverables, and media coverage. Instead of nurturing creativity, she found herself buried in spreadsheets. 'Just as I was stepping into the director's role, I was handed demands for TV airtime, publicity, ticket targets and other requests. That's not the role of an artist – that's a media agency's job,' she said. Tiara added that because of the lack of proper partnerships available to artists, many of them have had to compromise their visions to fit into corporate moulds. 'Beyond sponsorships, what we really need is a model thinking in terms of community and ecosystem building. 'If we want to see a thriving arts sector in the next five years, both the government and corporate Malaysia must commit to long-term investment in the development of artists and their work.' Tiara was speaking at a forum titled Profit Meets Performance: When Arts Means Business organised by the Merdeka Award Trust here. Low Ngai Yuen, president of the arts and culture NGO Kakiseni and moderator of the session, agreed that the arts ecosystem in Malaysia lacks the structure and support needed for creatives to thrive. Dancer and founder of the Sutra Foundation, Ramli Ibrahim, noted that the value of the arts should not be measured by financial metrics alone. 'You can't define the success of the arts in ringgit and sen,' he said, stressing that the 'profit' of arts lies in its influence on people. Fashion designer Bernard Chandran took the conversation further, stating creatives needed to be given freedom by businesses in order to see their visions realised. 'You can have all the money and tools in the world, but if they don't represent your aesthetic, your voice — it means nothing.'
Free Malaysia Today
30-06-2025
- Entertainment
- Free Malaysia Today
An astrophysicist and dance icon unite for a stellar journey through space
Dancers in a segment dedicated to the sun, the maker of the day. (Sutra Foundation pics) KUALA LUMPUR : Though often seen as separate realms, the arts and sciences are in fact two sides of the same creative coin. Both, after all, seek to explore, understand, and interpret the magic of the world. Often, magic happens when the two come together. This is clearly illustrated by upcoming theatre production 'Meniti Cakerawala 2.0', where Malaysia's first astrophysicist Mazlan Othman joins forces with dance legend Ramli Ibrahim and his Sutra Foundation, for an awe-inspiring production combining music, dance, film and art. Prepare for a stellar experience as Mazlan and her team explore the science and romance of the cosmos, and the interconnectedness of art and science. 'In the eyes of the heavens, we are all nothing. We are nothing but a speck of dust, a blink in the lifespan of the universe. So why do we keep on fighting each other?' Mazlan told FMT Lifestyle. 'I think this show has a very timely message, as it calls towards a universal humanity, for coming together in this difficult age the world is facing now.' A segment illustrating the conjoining of male and female principles in the myth of creation. (Sutra Foundation pic) According to Ramli, the show's artistic director, the idea for the show was sparked after the launch of Mazlan's book 'Cosmic Connections' in 2023. Reading it, he was convinced it would make a fine multimedia theatrical adaptation. 'We hope to have as many young people come to watch it, to hopefully inspire them to take a deeper interest in Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM),' he told FMT Lifestyle. 'Meniti Cakerawala 2.0' will focus on Mazlan's journey and contributions to Malaysia's scientific landscape, including her work with the Malaysian Space Agency and the founding of the Langkawi National Observatory. Mazlan herself will serve as storyteller, aided by 12 Sutra Foundation dancers and musicians Kamarul Baisah and Jayalakshmi Sekhar. 'When Ramli first suggested this, I was frightened! I expected to just be in the background, not upfront on stage! 'But I've more or less overcome that fear now. And I see now why it's important for me to be up there, telling my story and the story of the cosmos,' Mazlan said. Both Mazlan Othman and Ramli Ibrahim hope the audience will feel a deep connection with the universe through the 'Meniti Cakerawala 2.0' performance. (Sutra Foundation pics) The first version of the show premiered in Kuala Lumpur in December 2024, receiving rave reviews. Now, 'Meniti Cakerawala 2.0' will embark on an eight-city Malaysian tour from next month until September, making stops in Melaka, Seremban, Kuala Lumpur, Johor Bahru, Klang, Bayan Lepas, Kuching and Kota Kinabalu. For a show centred on stars, it's only fitting that it has a star-studded roster of collaborators on board. 'Meniti Cakerawala 2.0' will feature music by avant-garde composer Valerie Ross, fashion design by Leslie Variyan, lighting and set by Sivarajah Natarajan, and photography by S Magendran. Other artistic collaborators are poet laureate Haji Salleh, artist Jalaini Abu Hassan, dramatist Johan Jaaffar, and actors Chacko Vadaketh and the late Mano Maniam, whose performance was recorded before his passing. Transforming astronomical principles into dance choreography sounds like it would be a complicated task, but Ramli gamely decided to take up the challenge. In this segment, Mazlan expresses her dream to be wrapped in the cosmic cloths of the heavens. (Sutra Foundation pic) 'Dance is metaphor. And in the great book of Natya Shastra, it says there is no concept or axiom that cannot be depicted as dance. 'Even the concepts such as creation, polar opposites, or equilibrium can be expressed through movement, sometimes far more effectively than through words,' Ramli said. One highlight of the show will be an exploration of how celestial bodies have influenced the cultural traditions of various ethnic groups. 'We live by the sun, and love by the moon, so to speak. The sun is the maker of the day, the witness of deeds. At the same time, we found there was so much Malay music, especially love songs, that was inspired by the moon,' Ramli said. Mazlan and Ramli said they were hoping to take the show to India, as well as other destinations such as Singapore and Thailand. 'It's a show that will definitely appeal to the thinking public. I hope audiences take the message that they feel materially and physically connected to the heavens. Ultimately, we are all made of 'star stuff',' Mazlan concluded. Stay tuned for more information on the theatre production of 'Meniti Cakerawala 2.0'. (Sutra Foundation pic) For more information on 'Meniti Cakerawala 2.0', visit the Sutra Foundation's website.
Malay Mail
13-06-2025
- Entertainment
- Malay Mail
‘We're all star stuff': Dance legend Ramli Ibrahim and Malaysia's first astrophysicist unfold the cosmos in ‘Meniti Cakerawala'
KUALA LUMPUR, June 14 — Stars may be light years away from us, yet people across the board share the same adoration for them. Stars feature everywhere in human life — right from nursery rhymes, to lovelorn songs and even corny rom-coms. Dance legend Datuk Ramli Ibrahim says the fascination isn't surprising at all since humans and stars are made up of the same thing. This is the story behind Meniti Cakerawala — a multi-media dance-music-theatre production by Ramli's Sutra Foundation and led by Malaysia's first astrophysicist Tan Sri Mazlan Othman. 'There's great romance about the creation of the universe, including the fact that you and I are made of the star-stuff, as Carl Sagan would say,' Ramli told Malay Mail when met recently. Sagan, an American astronomer, wrote in 1973 that humans are 'made of star-stuff' because the elements in our bodies trace their origins to ancient stars. Dance maestro Datuk Ramli Ibrahim said unfolding the story of cosmos through dance was apt since the central theme of creation revolves around 'marriage of the opposites'. — Picture courtesy of Sutra Foundation Mazlan echoes Sagan's theory in her book, Cosmic Connections (2023), which compiles images of celestial objects taken from the Langkawi National Observatory (LNO). In the book, Mazlan describes the birth of stars and how their death gives birth to the cosmos and Malaysia's encounters with celestial objects, including a meteorite strike that had shaped the legendary Mahsuri Rings in Langkawi. 'We are materially connected to space, as Sagan pointed out. 'Imagine this: We are made from the same atoms that make the stars. The atoms are inanimate. So, isn't it a miracle that humans, made from the same inanimate atoms as stars, can consciously think and wonder?' she said. The book also incorporated poems from National Laureate Dr Muhammad Haji Salleh and artworks from award-winning artist Jalaini Abu Hassan. Why dance? Since Mazlan regarded the book as a 'labour of love' of both science and the arts, she wanted to perform the content as part of the book launch. After consulting her friend Tan Sri Johan Jaaffar, Mazlan roped in Ramli to dramatise the content with dance and music. 'I knew I couldn't fail because Ramli was dancing. There was no room for failure,' Mazlan said. 'Meniti Cakerawala' premiered for a week at the Auditorium Bandaraya in Kuala Lumpur in December 2024. — Picture courtesy of Sutra Foundation The first show took place beneath the star-studded sky at Ambong-Ambong Resort in Langkawi, close to the Tepor Island where the Mahsuri Rings formed after a meteorite strike. Seeing that the performance had a greater potential, Ramli and Johan convinced Mazlan to turn it into a full-fledged stage production, leading to Meniti Cakerawala. This time, however, Ramli wanted to 'look at the cosmos from Mazlan's window' by intertwining her journey into astrophysics with the creation of the cosmos. 'Marrying the opposites' Ramli said unfolding the story of cosmos through dance was apt since the central theme of creation revolves around 'marriage of the opposites'. 'I really feel that the mystics have always realised that something manifests from the un-manifested only when there is a pull of opposites, like positive and negative, purusha and prakriti (in Vedic philosophy) as well as yin and yang (in Chinese philosophy). 'So, I used a lot of metaphors to illustrate this,' he said. The 90-minute production consists of four phases and 12 dancers. Mazlan, as the storyteller, weaves the story of cosmos together with her discovery of astrophysics. The second season will kick off on July 18 in Melaka and will premiere in a total of eight states, including Sabah and Sarawak. — Picture courtesy of Sutra Foundation In the first phase, Mazlan narrates her childhood favourite poem — He Wishes for the Cloths of Heaven by William Butler Yeats — as dancers re-enact the early days of her fascination for astronomy. The second phase is focused on narrating the origin of the universe while the third phase explores civilisational and cultural beliefs related to astronomy. The show concludes with Mazlan leading the audience to ponder on the larger meaning of life in the universe. Meniti Cakerawala premiered for a week at the Auditorium Bandaraya in Kuala Lumpur in December 2024. The second season will kick off on July 18 in Melaka and will premiere in a total of eight states, including Sabah and Sarawak. Ramli said discussions for a world tour are also underway, with plans to stage the production in India this November. Other countries that could be part of the world tour include Thailand and Singapore. The dance maestro hopes that Meniti Cakerawala will inspire students to pursue STEM-related careers, and dispel the notion that science and arts operate in silos. 'STEM does not necessarily have to be cut-and-dry. As an engineering graduate, I think there is a creative process in the discoveries and innovations that occur in science,' he said.
