Spread the Word Archives - As Suanie Sees It

Crackhouse Comedy Club, Kuala Lumpur

November 19, 2015 By Suanie 4 Comments

Are you a fan of comedy? Don’t lie, my blog only attracts fun and funny people.

I LOVE comedy in many forms, one of them being stand-up. Malaysia isn’t known for its comedians, which is a shame because we have really good ones! They’ve been coming out of the woodwork for the past few years, honing their skills and getting better with every show.

I really admire folks who have the courage to write their own material and perform it out in front of a live audience. Even if they aren’t polished… yet, I appreciate them more than those spouting recycled Internet jokes. Not to say telling unoriginal jokes is terrible but please lah, just don’t base your entire show on jokes I heard from 15 years ago.

Full house!

Last year, Rizal van Geyzel and Jonathan Atherton got together to start the Crackhouse Comedy Club in Taman Tun Dr Ismail. Lauded as South East Asia’s first dedicated stand-up comedy club (we had TimeOut Comedy Thursday but it was a different ballgame), they’ve had stellar comedians from around the world popping by, entertaining appreciative audiences.

It is one of those places that I’d meant to check out but never did because life, until I received an invitation to an evening of comedy featuring Canadian Glenn Wool. All right, let’s go!

Cosy set-up

Where is it? You know that row of shops where Tom Dick & Harry is? There’s a nearby German bar whose name I could never pronounce correctly, the Deutsches Gasthaus. Crackhouse Comedy Club is right above this German bar. There’s no actual signboard but on the evenings that they are open, you can see a chalkboard outside announcing their line-up.

A rickety stage stands in the centre against a backdrop of exposed bricks. The bar lies at the back, serving inexpensive drinks of the usual sodas, beer, wine and liquor. Please check out the toilets; it’s not something one would often say of lavatories but let me just pull off that line: trust me.

Jonathan Atherton pleads guilty to being funny

Our emcee for the evening, Jonathan Atherton has been around the world and finally settled in SEA. So don’t be surprised to see this Caucasian-looking man talking his head off in various languages! He probably speaks better Malay than a lot of Malaysians, so there!

Brian Tan

Brian ‘One-Liner’ Tan went on the stage and gave it a brave go. Some hits and misses, he knew it and took it in stride. I think he may be confusing for some people who likely do not realise that his lack of stage charisma was in fact, his act.

Prakash Daniel

Prakash Daniel – photographer, YouTube star and comedian moonlights as Crackhouse Comedy Club’s ticket handler, bouncer and waiter. On stage, he was focused, thoughtful and picked his moments well. Looking forward to more of his shows!

Hannan Azlan

Hannan Azlan is a name to watch out for. A ‘graduate’ of Crackhouse Comedy Club’s Open Mic Night (Wednesdays from 8pm) where aspiring comedians get to test their material on stage, young Hannan’s dark act left us in stitches. I can’t wait to see more of Hannan; from what we saw that evening, the road has just begun for this bright, talented young lady.

Justin Heyes

Justin Heyes from the UK has made Malaysia his home. Being young and happily married, his reflections of society’s expectations on his mixed marriage and wife tickled our funny bones. Justin is no stranger to the local comedy scene, having performed in shows staged in a few SEA countries, and co-starred in local TV productions.

Glenn Wool

The headliner of the evening, Glenn Wool is an acclaimed Canadian stand-up funnyman now living in the UK. The audience had to warm up to his over-the-top delivery style, but once they did, it was a home run for the travelling comedian.

All in all, it was a lovely evening at the Crackhouse Comedy Club. It’s exciting to have such world class stand-up comedy environment in our midst, to witness the burgeoning talent of local comedians, to see increased appreciation for stand-up comedy among Malaysians.

The Crackhouse Comedy Club is open on Wednesday (Open Mic Night), selected Thursdays (improv nights) and Fridays and Saturdays (feature headliners). Entry prices start from RM15 per person. For the evening that we attended, it was RM40 per person. Are they planning to make any money out of this or what??

Go check out the Crackhouse Comedy Club for a fun night where you wouldn’t have to break the bank!

Crackhouse Comedy Club
24a Lorong Rahim Kajai 14,
Taman Tun Dr Ismail,
60000 Kuala Lumpur.

Website: Crackhousecomedy.asia
Facebook: CrackhouseComedy

In Between Floors

November 28, 2014 By Suanie 2 Comments

I first met Bernice Low over 10 years ago when I first came to Kuala Lumpur. She came across as a fast talker, incredibly intelligent, quick-witted, sharp-tongued, soul-crushingly honest and highly intimidating.

“Hi I am a words prostitute; I write for money.”

When Bernice invited me to the press screening of her debut feature film In Between Floors, I suddenly had a flashback of our introduction (see above). It struck me that there is a connection, a significance that all the personality was in preparation for a project this daunting.

Without me saying as much, this is the movie promotional poster. But I’m saying as much.

I found out that Bernice was the writer, executive producer, line producer, supervising producer, film director, casting director, financier etc almost ONE LEG KICK etc. I’m not sure if anyone else without the balls of Bernice can pull this through and make something semblance of decent.

And beyond decent it was! How do you keep your audience captivated without bishbushmichaelbaybang, ghosties, zombies, lawak tak masuk akal, ombakrinduyanglagitakmasukakal nor Bront Palarae?

Jawapannya: good storytelling, decent script and actors! Menang menang, semua menang!

Even more impressive: this is Bernice’s FIRST attempt at film making *claps*

When I was stuck in a lift, there was no Nando’s sticker…

In Between Floors sees an ‘ahbeng, Kenth (Alvin Wong) and ‘banana’ Sharon (Dawn Cheong) unfortunately trapped in an elevator together, accompanied by a security manager with a god complex. Over the time that they were forced to spend together, Kenth and Sharon find that they may have more in common than differences.

CILISOS interviewed Bernice on what it was like making a movie. It was VERY educational, interesting and I think everyone can better appreciate what goes on behind the scenes of making a film in Malaysia. And how much money it costs, omg! *click to read*

Godzilla is angers. No wait, that’s Bernice.

Catch In Between Floors at selected GSC cinemas now! At Pavilion, Midvalley, 1 Utama and Gurney Plaza. Read more production notes here *click* and enjoy the trailer below:

p/s: Don’t wait too long to watch local movies at the cinema okay. They don’t screen ’em for very long.

2 Comments Filed Under: Spread the Word Tagged With: english movie malaysia, malaysian movies

Twestival Kuala Lumpur 2013 raising money for PKKI!

November 29, 2013 By Suanie 1 Comment

Twestival Kuala Lumpur is back for 2013!

Wait, what is Twestival? In short, it’s a global movement to raise money for selected charities. The Kuala Lumpur team (which I’m proud to be part of) have been doing it since 2009, raising money for:

2009: Destiny Starting Point, Klang, a home juvenile delinquents. RM11K raised
2010: Concern Worldwide, International education NGO. RM3,000 raised (globally raised USD450,000)
2011: PRIHATIN, Kota Bahru. A NGO for single mothers and children with HIV/AIDS. RM26K raised
2012: Took a break
2013: Wahey, we’re back!! It’s Persatuan Kanak-Kanak Istimewa Hulu Langat (PKKI) this year!

Organising small-scale Twestival KL events is still tiring and stressful as we do it on top of our day jobs. But it is very fulfilling (and humbling), and I learned so much throughout the years! I am continuously amazed by the talent of our team and the generosity of our community.

It’s a global rule that all Twestival charity-drives have to be sponsored from A-Z. This means, no organization/ hosting/ F&B costs – ALL monies raised go direct to the charity. We do not get paid – in fact we pay for our own tickets to the events.

So to put it simply, it ain’t easy. That’s why we don’t do it all the time 😉 But the amazing team always pulls through, and your generosity – both as a company or individual sponsor allows us to give as much cash as we can raise to the charities.

Thank you! (mwah mwah mwah)

Twestival KL 2013

This year we’re raising funds for Persatuan Kanak-Kanak Istimewa Hulu Langat (PKKI)! Our event will be at:

Date : 7th December 2013 (Saturday
Time : 2 – 6pm
Venue : The Bee, Publika

Tickets are available at a minimum of RM50 donation. If you purchase three, you’ll get a special limited-edition Moleskine from @cziplee with the Twestival KL logo printed on it!

Find out more: *link*. If you want tickets, I have some left so hurry up and ask! =D

About PKKI

(long story ahead okay!)

Persatuan Kanak-Kanak Istimewa Hulu Langat (PKKI) is a day training centre for children with special needs. They are currently in two houses in Taman Cuepacs, Cheras. Some kids attend daily classes like you would in a school, and some go for therapy sessions.

Shirley telling us about PKKI

Nearly 25 years ago, Ms Shirley Tan’s daughter Steffi was born with severe cerebral palsy. And so she was thrust into a world of initial helplessness, doctors who told her that there was no more hope, and a bleak future as they claimed that Steffi would not live past 10 years old.

Determined to provide the best for Steffi, Shirley quit her job and learned to drive so she could ferry her daughter to therapy sessions. When Steffi turned 6, they had to stop going to Wisma Harapan as it was the cut-off age.

“What are we going to do?”

In desperation, Shirley and some parents set up PKKI to cater for their own children and more. As the government encourages parents to take the reins, they were given a RM5000 grant to start off with. After that they were on their own.

Today, PKKI hosts 92 children with different special needs to cater to. They have 22 staff including teachers, therapists and administrative. They also hired a full-time driver as many of the parents could not send their children to the centre for their classes or therapy sessions.

Children’s artwork on display

Parents pay RM120 a month as a form of commitment. For parents who can’t even afford the monthly sum, PKKI helps to source for sponsors. It helps to offset PKKI’s monthly expenses which runs to nearly RM50,000.

On caring for children with special needs

PKKI is very labour-intensive, as is the nature when working with children with special needs. Just ask Shirley.

“It is a 24 hour job of care with no respite. With my late daughter, I took more than an hour to feed her at every meal. Some children have to be exercised daily to loosen their muscles, otherwise they would stiffen up like a piece of wood and the damage is almost irreversible. You also have to spend extra time with the children, as they are always scared that they would be abandoned. Special needs children have a heightened sense of insecurity,” Shirley said.

A child undergoing a session to strengthen her neck muscles

“An ex-student’s mother had two strokes while taking care of him. She was left with no choice but to put him in a home. You know it is sad, but she was not able to take care of herself let alone a child with special needs. Three months later, he died in the home.”

“A lot of people do not know what to do with special needs children. I don’t want the parents to go through what I went through; I want to give people hope, especially the parents who were told that there’s no more hope or help left.”

What’s next for PKKI?

PKKI’s next project is a one-stop centre in Taman Mahkota Cheras. With the new centre, they would be able to take in more children and cater for more therapy and activities. Already there is a long waiting list and requests for PKKI to accept more students.

Shirley showing us plan for the one-stop centre

The existing two houses in Taman Cuepecs would be converted into care homes for the children where they could live for the rest of their lives. After all their parents would grow old and pass on. In many cases, there would be no one left to take care of their children.

We ask Shirley what keeps her going. She smiled,

“I lost my daughter in 2010. She was 21 years old when she passed on. Last month, my husband passed away. My nearest and dearest are now gone. But if I’m still useful here, I want to contribute.”

“I’m not young you know, I’m 65 years old. But if I’m still healthy, I want to carry on. I want to let the parents know that they are not alone.”

“Some doctors tell them that if the kids do not walk between 4 to 6 years old, then they will never walk and there’s no more hope left. Well some of our students started walking at 9 years old! What do you say to that?” She grinned, a glimmer of triumph in her eyes.

Shirley with some of us: Niki, me, Grace and Ling!