“I Like. Like Me“ – Theater Review

What’s more apt than to cast MP Mr Baey Yam Keng, a social media celebrity to star as the male lead in Like Me. I Like – a social media-themed play by theatre group The ETCeteras.

As it turns out, not only is he a decent actor, I have to also applaud him for his resilience as he was in the midst of recovering from dengue the day before his performance.

Though the overall performance was not exactly an awe-inspiring one, it was thought provoking as it subtly brings across the message of our obsession with social media as well as the pace of which our society is heading towards, driving us to reflect about life.

Do you always heed the advice of silencing your phones and to avoid using flash photography before the play starts? Well, it is not quite so for the cast. Primarily a play based on social media, the actors were constantly online. Throughout the play, the characters’ Whatsapp messages, tweets and Facebook updates were regularly updated on the screens, just like how most of us do so in real life.

The story takes place in an amusing advertising firm where copywriter Wenyao (Baey) prefers to indulge in social media and taking selfies rather than to interact with people around him in real life. He is, however, attracted to his pretty colleague Zifen (Foong) whom he could only express his feelings through the comfort of his phone.

The tempo of their relationship was rather slow, but nevertheless, their chemistry coupled with live music, tugged my heartstrings as their dialogue progresses to the point where they acknowledged their feelings for one another. However, though touching as it is, it was Ben and Jerry (Ang & Chung) who stole the show with their humorous roles with one being an annoying mobile addict and the other, a friend who was annoyed with the addict.

Cleverly inserting localised terms and current affairs in a comical manner, scriptwriter Hai Yen & Kun Wah managed to capture my attention when they used them to illustrate a trend prevalent in our society such as being impatient since it is considered slow to not receive a reply within 10 secs.

Gracing the finale are the MP for Tampines GRC Mr Mah Bow Tan, former MP Ms Cynthia Phua and Minister Mrs Lim Hwee Hua and we were thankful to have the friendly Ms Phua to help us take a photo with the male lead of the day, Mr Baey.

Like Me. I Like is an entertaining play littered with some genuine underlying issues that are worth exploring and I was really glad to have been presented with the opportunity to catch this play. Though not exactly a memorable production, it was great fun in the name of acting and charity.

Honored to have a picture taken with MP Mr Baey Yam Keng

Cast's Selfie

Expressions:

“Do you know what is the farthest distance in the world? It is when you keep using your phone while I am here.” – Zifen

“I didn’t know Yam Keng was such a great actor.” – Mr Mah Bow Tan, MP for Tampines GRC

“I really really enjoyed the play. There was laughter, human touch and local, contemporary situations.” – Mr Mah Bow Tan

“There were a lot of subtle clues in the play and it completes the show.” – Kenneth, Hwa Chong Student

“I think there is something different about live singing, because we can always react to the emotions of the play. If the actors’ portray a sadder feel, the singer will also be affected and the songs sang will be sad too.” – Aaron Matthew Lim, Live Singer