Up, Close and personal with... "Cikgu Hamid"

Villa Singa was re-staged last Wednesday, 17th Aug 2005 at Victoria Theatre. Written and directed by Nadiputra, the play was based on a true story of a retired army veteran, Encik Hamzah, who was very regimented and highly disciplined in raising his children. This drama was performed 30 years ago at the National Theatre.

Does being very regimental lead to highly-disciplined children? Will this authoritative up-bringing create a happy family environment? Issues emerged when Encik Hamzah disagreed his son, Yunus, to continue his involvement in the arts. He stressed the importance of education, which Yunus' other siblings possesed. This, among others, caused a friction in their relationship in their home that was well-known as "Villa Singa" in the community. The family environment suddenly changed with the help of an elderly confidant by the name of Cik Mat. The friction within the family slowly lessened, however, Encik Hamzah foresee an unpleasant outcome with the sudden unexpected appearance of Marlia, his ex-flame.

In this segment, Hipz! (Hazriq Idrus Productionz) gets up, close and personal with ...Hazriq Idrus, who played "Cikgu Hamid", one of the characters in the play.

Hipz!: What is Cikgu Hamid's role in this play and his relationship with the other characters?
Hazriq: Cikgu Hamid is a neutral party. He's the teacher of Khalsom (played by Juliyanti Jalil) and they are very close with each other. Cikgu Hamid also appears as someone who tries to put sense into Encik Hamzah's way of dealing in discipline, but in his own way and style. His presence also serves as the peace-maker between the family members.

Hipz!: What do you like about the character?
Hazriq: It is one of my favourite characters that I've ever played. As a teacher, Cikgu Hamid is firm and likes to put his thoughts across but in a gentle and humourous way. This actually earns Encik Hamzah's respect. If you had seen the play, Cikgu Hamid is more of a mild comic relief character, just to ease the tensions that had been created by the rest of the characters in the play.

Hipz!: People speculate that Cikgu Hamid falls for his student, the young Khalsom, in the play. Is it true?
Hazriq: I think, it depends on how the audience perceived it. At one point, it seems true. I mean, people would question that why on earth that a teacher would send this particular student home, whereas there are other students who he could send them home too. But sending someone home doesnt mean, he likes the other person, right? Perhaps, Cikgu Hamid could be just living around the neighbourhood where Khalsom lives, that's why he sends her back after school. But then again, during the 80s, teachers and students did become items and couples.

Hipz!: Can the character be developed further in the story?
Hazriq: Definitely. But for this particular play, I think the character development is just nice. Afterall, he's not really part of the family and had no reason for his character to be developed further, or maybe not yet...haha. Maybe if there's a sequel, then we could see a further development on that character. Possibly in the sequel there could be a scene where Cikgu Hamid could ask Khalsom's hand for marriage... hahaha.

Hipz!: Is this your 1st production with Theatre 2000?
Hazriq: It is my first major production with Theatre 2000 eversince I joined them in 2001. Prior to this, I was more involved in its minor projects like Santai Puisi in 2001 and Sayembara Theatre Competition in 2002 and 2004. But in between, I did theatre projects with various other theatre companies like Teater Titisan, Teater Kami, Teater Ekamatra or other small theatre performances/skits under various organisations like MUIS, 4PM etc.

Hipz!: This production has a mixture of established and new actors. Where do you think you fall into?
Hazriq: This is a tricky question. I have been involved in the scene for about 8 years. My debut was back in 1997, ironically, also at Victoria Theatre. I'm not sure if I am considered new but definitely I'm not an established actor yet. Still got a lot to learn. Maybe I considered myself as intermediate?

Hipz!: What's your experience working in this production?
Hazriq: I think it was fun. The camaraderie was great. We had a great time in rehearsals. Raffi Khan, Norsiah Ramly, Zainal Mohamed, Ahmad Junadi, though they are established actors, they are very humble and down-to-earth people. They are true professionals. I think their humble personality brought to where they are now. And they are funny people too. Fun was injected during rehearsals to make it enjoyable. Also, newcomers like Kemy, Shafie, Lyn and Juli were making their debut in this production but their diligentness showed and they did very well on stage. Kudos to them too!

Casts of Villa Singa:
Raffi Khan as Encik Hamzah
Norsiah Ramly as Marlia,
Sudin Kassim/Aziz Joned as Cik Mat
A Junaidi/ Faizal Ramli as Yunus
Zainal Mohamed as Yusuf
Norhayati Ansari as Maimon
Hazlina Hashimi/ Adrina Inda as Aishah
Juliyanti Jalil as Khalsom
Hazriq Idrus as Cikgu Hamid
Syed Muhammad as Dr Salim
Sukaimi Supaat as Murad
Jamilah A Bakar as Mak Leha
Md Shafie as Peguam

Crews
Sharon Yusof - Stage Manager
Ezan Datt - Sound Operator
Arifah and Mustaqim - Props Co-ordinator
Suriani Pani - Dance Choreographer
Dancers