Dream Academy highlights the power of a good laugh in latest edition of Happy Ever Laughter.
By now, Dream Academy’s Happy Ever Laughter had made quite a name for itself. Each time the stand-up comedy revue makes a return, there’s strong anticipation as the crowds gather for a night of letting go, and allowing themselves to just kick back, relax and well, laugh.
This time around, Dream Academy has prepared a bumper crop of comedians, with a total of 12 comics in the line-up, comprising both well-known humourists and newcomers to the stage, making for a marathon of jokes to keep the fun going all through the night. Starting off the show proper is Hossan Leong, who warms up the audience with familiar anecdotes of traveling across the Causeway, and his experiences having now moved to Johor Bahru.
Hossan is followed by Hafidz Rahman, best known for his social media content and portraying his original character Mak Temah. Once again clad in a tudung, in character, Hafidz educates the audience about the four values of the Makcik – health, Henry Golding, bringing up a good son and safety. While it took some time for him to get momentum, Hafidz picked up the pace and won the audience’s applause over the course of his set.
Next up was actress Xixi Lim, who shared her experiences being a plus-size woman – such as being ‘accused’ to be Moses Lim’s daughter, and how she might as well be him. But all in good humour, Xixi was all about the body positivity, and kept up the good spirits as she shared the trials and tribulations of travelling with her two friends, such as space constraints on the plane. And at the end of it, they are still friends, so all is good.
Princess of Singapore’s comedy scene Sharul Channa then took the stage, certainly showed her class and experience. Pushing the volume up afew notches and warming up the audience at Capitol. She shared the perils of performing in Malaysia, but emerging from it stronger, and how she has now achieved being a ‘Halal-certified comedian’. There is no topic too taboo for Sharul, as she discussed the prices of sports bras and who should be wearing them. The stories about her swimming pool, getting eyeful of views she doesn’t necessarily want to see from the best view of all – her apartment.
Paving the way for newcomer Noah Yap, the young actor shared about his newfound fame from the Ah Boys to Men film series, yet his fame isn’t quite enough yet where he laments he is the only one amongst the boys that people don’t really know and where the officers are still the one picking him out to check at the airport, and selecting his bags to screen when he’s flying back or flying overseas. And even gave himself a call-sign ‘frequent finer’. While it’s his first time doing stand-up, he puts in a valiant attempt at working the crowd and finding his own rhythm.
Actress Pam Oei is next in line, and continues with an all important lesson about the difference between menstruation and menopause, helping us understand what’s going on before going on to even more medical conditions – tinnitus, and helping us understand what she’s going through. Always a strong presence on stage and a wonderful mentor for all.
Beloved actress Siti K was raring to go, and took on her alter ego – ‘Siti Ariana’, and welcomed us to the ‘meet and greet’. Turning up the heat, Siti proved she was certainly more of a Venti instead of a Grande, charming as she shows us how marketing is done, as she sold her show and unique merchandise – the Sambal Siti Venti. Siti’s natural charisma and talent ensures she’s always bringing her A-Game to the stage, with impressive vocals as she ends her set with a parody of ‘Bang Bang’, allowing for the entire cast to join in for an explosive end to the first half of the show.
Opening the second half was Jacky Ng, a known name in the comedy scene, who showcased a wealth of material, from how he came from a boy’s school in Serangoon, to the story of our national soccer Captain Hariss Harun, and even the foundation behind Singapore jokes always starting with ‘your mother’.
Sunny Side Up actor Prem John, making his debut on Happy Ever Laughter, came out confidently in blue and red, a self-proclaimed ‘low budget Spiderman’, and brought his experience from the set to showcasing how he could work the audience, with intelligent jokes and clever punchlines delivered well, nailing the humour.
Fakkah Fuzz arrived for his 6th run on the show, and while we already knew what to expect from him, he went on to share material about family values and uncle Abu, before moving into more personal territory, talking about how he began as a crowd warmer on Asia’s Got Talent to formally being recognised as a stand up comedian. His hard work and journey is a commendable one, and one that we look forward to his journey to the top.
Rishi Budhrani’s turn onstage certainly didn’t go unnoticed, sporting a new look. Alongside more sports topics, such as what Singapore goalkeeper Hassan Sunny had done recently when Singapore played Thailand, and how he amassed a big following from Chinese fans, to the concept of constructive ignorance. Rishi always find ways to make you think, laugh and just enjoy the moment. And for me, that is what makes him one of the in-form comedians on the circuit.
Rounding off the night was Malaysia’s Dr Jason Leong, and bringing his decade-long experience in stand up to the stage. Sharing about the Asian story, Dr Leong went on to talk about how religion played such a ‘huge role’ when growing up, determining the friends we have and the stories we remember. All that somehow linked back to speaking about dinosaurs living on Earth 65 million years ago, and Dr Leong showed off his expertise at crowd control and appeal from his demeanour, proof that he has mastered his art as a comedian over the years.
Marking the end to another successful edition of the show, a night with Happy Ever Laughter leaves you with your step a little lighter and your mood lifted. Dream Academy proves that they have the chutzpah and determination to make the format work year on year, finding ways to showcase both new talent while pulling in the numbers with crowd pleasers.
Featured Photo Credit: Dream Academy®
Happy Ever Laughter plays from 20th to 28th June 2024 at Capitol Theatre. Tickets available from SISTIC
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