The epitome of a holiday season variety show and brilliant way to celebrate the end of 2023.

Christmas has always been a time for joy and laughter, and one of the most consistent companies bringing that to Singaporeans almost every December is Dream Academy, with their seasonal Crazy Christmas revue, a prime opportunity to show off their artistes and friends onstage, and put on a good show.

Now in its 11th edition, the series of comedic sketches surrounds a debutante ball taking place over Christmas. But it’s not all parties – it turns out it’s a full on competition as participants vie for the coveted title of the Cubic Zirconia of Queen Harlotte, played by none other than the legendary Kumar. Under her royal decree, the rest of the Belles are equally over-the-top with creative names – there’s Lady Belley Good (Selena Tan), Lady SlayBelles (George Chan), Lady Belle Ring (Sebastian Tan), voluptuous Lady Belle Curve (Andrew Marko) and muscular Lady DumBelle (Dwayne Lau).

Dream Academy’s cast have always excelled on maintaining high energy throughout their show, and the entire show starts off with a bang, with the entire cast dancing along to the hottest songs of the year, including Kylie Minogue’s ‘Padam Padam’ and the TikTok viral Vietnamese song ‘See Tinh’, and even the nostalgic ‘What Does The Fox Say?’, all in one mega choreographed number. From there, it only gets wilder, ranging from snippets from a pingpong show to the world of Walt Disney, ballet and belly dancing, to even references to horror icon Annabelle. No topic goes untouched, and each one is tackled in earnest.

As host of the party, Kumar takes centrestage, and the moment he comes out, he receives applause from the entire theatre. Dressed in red and white, his signature delivery style carries his jokes, as he talks about modern woke culture and life experiences, and even throws in a dig about how he would make a useful fourth wise man to add to the Christmas canon.

In a similar vein, acapella group Vocaluptuous is also a mainstay of Crazy Christmas, and delivered a medley of Christmas songs while even attempting some choreography, forming festive shapes such as a Christmas tree. Among them, the standout performer remains Kai with his skilful beatboxing, before the group ends off with a sultry cover of ‘What Are You Doing New Year’s Eve?’ led by John Lee.

Meanwhile, Sebastian Tan, as Broadway Beng, delivers an impressive theatrical set that makes us want to let our hair down and enjoy. Arriving onstage as a shimmering angel in pure white, Frederick Lee’s costume certainly lit up not just his costume, but the entire show. Sebastian utilises his natural charisma to play off the audience’s energy, reaching us to find the happiness within, and sings a medley of familiar favourites, from ‘Wa Meng Ti’ to Broadway ditties.

Even for Dwayne and Andrew, despite it being their first time in Crazy Christmas, there’s an immediate chemistry between the two of them, as the resident ‘Tinker Belles’, to warm applause and laughter from the audience. Following a cover of Miley Cyrus’ ‘Flowers’ by George Chan, the two of them kicked up a proper ruckus with ‘Dance Monkey’ (Andrew) and Lizzo’s ‘Good As Hell’ (Dwayne), before all three performed a closer to end their set with smooth, effective choreography.

And of course, director and Dim Sum Dolly Selena Tan gets her own moment in the sun, as she arrives onstage in a luxe, navy blue velvet dress. Heartfelt and sincere, she shares her wisdom and stories to us all, singing about that lonely girl and giving her all as she belts out the notes. It’s all testament to how much effort she puts in to all her shows, leaving it all there onstage to wow us.

In the Crazy Christmas tradition, amidst all the jokes and fun, there’s still the actual spirit of Christmas present by its end, as Selena comes out with her three ‘wise men’ (Belles), and gives a very public prayer for peace on Earth and sending good vibes to everyone for the holiday season and the New Year. As the whole ensemble comes out and sings ‘Joy To The World’, we find ourselves revelling in all these Christmas songs in a medley of ‘Jingle Bells’, ‘Rudolph The Red-Nosed Reindeer’ and ‘We Wish You A Merry Christmas’, spreading Christmas cheer.

Dream Academy is never one to shy away from charity, and proceeds from this show also went towards a good cause – the Institute of Mental Health, in a bid to raise awareness of mental illness in society, and a reminder to be more observant, care for and love each other more. No matter what, it’s been a heck of a journey through 2023 for all, as Dream Academy bids the audience good night, and promises to dream up even more fantastic productions come 2024, always putting their best foot forward in doing the best they can for Singapore and the local arts scene.

Photo Credit: Dream Academy

Crazy Christmas™ Balls of the Belles played from 7th to 16th December 2023 at Capitol Theatre.

Production Credits:

Director: Selena Tan Cast: Selena Tan, Sebastian Tan, George Chan, Andrew Marko, Dwayne Lau, Kumar, Vocaluptuous Music Director: Joel Nah Band: Joel Nah (Band Leader/Keyboard), Lee Lin Chow (Drums), Chee Wah Yong (Bass), Daniel Chai (Guitar), Zaidi Sabtu Ramli (Saxophone), Julian Wong (Violin), Trinh Ha Linh (Cellist) Choreographer: Gino Babagay Choreographer Writer (For Kumar): Benjamin “Mr Miyagi” Lee Costume Designer: Frederick Lee Hair & Wig Designer: Fadli Rahman (WigsbySalome) Make-Up Designer: Bobbie Ng (The Make Up Room) Sound Designer and Engineer: Shah Tahir Lighting Designer: Onion (Roadie) Art Direction: TRIPPLE Multimedia Design: Maximilian Liang (Fictionshore)