The sitcom on stage

Published on August 29, 2007

 Stage comedy "Luk Khun Luang" now playing at Muang Thai Rachadalai Theatre is, like the other recent box office hit and critical failure "Chai Klang", plagued with a "TV mentality".

Author MR Kukrit Pramoj, one of Thailand's most revered politicians and writers, may have said in the introduction that the play was "intended for fun… not to be taken seriously", but did the producers really have to interpret this so literally?

This kind of an introductory remark is a millennia-old tradition in Thai literature, but the reader understands right away that there's more to it than meets the eye.

Unfortunately, producer Takonkiet Viravan took Kukrit's words as fact and overlooked the play's insightful message. This much was clear just from reading Takonkiet's words in the programme: "The fact that we love nonsense doesn't mean we're stupid. We just want to take a break from the stiffness and boredom of essence."

With this "the more nonsense, the funnier" concept in mind, four aspiring writers of popular sitcoms "Bang Rak Soi 9" and "Pen Tor" pulled out all the tricks to make this play even more light-hearted than it already is, spoon-feeding the audience the same way they do for TV.

For example, they probably assumed the audience wouldn't know what the Laem Thong Games were. So they cut them out, even though the period-specific production design showed that the story was set before the SEA Games ever came into existence.

Moreover, in the mistaken belief that contemporary audiences wouldn't understand certain references and thus miss the jokes, the writers also added to the dialogue.

While in the original script, Absorn simply asks, "I'm Khru Uea's daughter?", here she ploughs through, "Khru Uea Sunthonsanan, the head of Sunthraphon Music Ensemble?"

Worse, they even explain that the name "Mom Kukrit" in the original script refers to MR Kukrit Pramoj.  Do we playgoers really need such crystal-clear explanations in order to laugh? Are the scriptwriters looking down on us?

In comedies, jokes are strategically placed at certain points. When you add explanations, the all-important timing is lost and with it goes the comedic power.

Instead of trying to tamper with the original script, more research would have helped this revival. Apart from adding tasteless homosexual jokes, the script adapters assumed there was a typo in the original script. Most classical music aficionados know that the first syllable in "Beethoven" is pronounced "bay", not "bee". MR Kukrit clearly wrote "bay" in his original script, but Samrerng - the famous lyricist portrayed cartoon-style by Sirisak "Tik Shiro" Nantasen - enunciates "bee" on stage.

Furthermore, three unnecessary characters - a chauffeur and two bodyguards - were added to the production, probably to better fill the stage. All they did was drag out the leaden action even longer.

The producers also added physical comedy, which was non-existent in the original play where words mattered more than actions. As a result, a three-act, 75-minute stage comedy was turned into a four-act 105-minute forgettable sitcom, with a 15-minute intermission.

Do we feel that we're getting more bang for our buck if the play is longer, has more characters and more irrelevant jokes?

Clearly, artistic freedom careened out of control, to the point where many audience members wondered if they should regard this comedy as a work of MR Kukrit's, or of the TV sitcom writers.

There was entertainment value, due in part to director Pha-un Chantharasiri's fine pacing, colourful set and costume designs, as well as stellar performances by lead actress Chintara Sukkhaphat and show-stealer Waraphan Nguitrakun, but many meaningful messages were either lost or watered down.

Kukrit did say in the introduction, "Don't imitate the actions of the characters."

It's important to note that the veteran playwright wrote "Luk Khun Luang" as a TV comedy 47 years ago. In 1989, Yingyot Panya's production of this play at Montienthong Theatre proved that, by respecting the original script and understanding the difference between TV and theatre, it can be successfully transferred to the stage. That production was hailed as one of the year's best.

Contaminated by its TV mentality, this 2007 revival hasn't received similar kudos, something that's already evident from the many reviews published in the past two weeks.

There's nothing wrong with branching out and working with different media, but it's important to remember that TV and stage comedies work differently, and to adjust the techniques accordingly.

Unfortunately, the TV mentality will be back treading the boards next month in Scenario's second revival of "Banlang Mek the Musical". Theatre aficionados are wondering why Suthasinee Phutthinan and Atthaporn Teemakorn - both highly acclaimed in the previous stagings of this musical epic, especially for their heartfelt and commanding renditions of "It's My Fault" and "An Overlooked One" - have been replaced by TV heartthrobs with no stage experience.

"Luk Khun Luang" runs at Muang Thai Rachadalai Theatre through Saturday. Showtimes are 7.30pm, with additional 2pm matinees on weekends. Tickets range from Bt500 to Bt1,800 and are available at Thaiticketmajor.com. For more information, visit Scenario.co.th.

The writer can be contacted at Pawit.M @ chula.ac.th.

 Pawit Mahasarinand

 The Nation