Programme 2022

Wichaya Artamat / For What Theatre

This Song Father Used to Sing (Three Days in May)

Programma soort: Main programme
Genre: Theatre
Herkomst: Bangkok, Thailand

Following the passing away of their father, a brother and sister meet to remember him and to put their lives back on track through gentle humour and absurd reflection on times past.

Entrance

€ 16,-

Duration

100 minutes

Language

Thai spoken, English subtitles

Location

Grand Theatre

Accessibility

This performance might be limited in accessibility.

Check times

The bittersweet beauty of life

In a tiny kitchen in Bangkok, a brother and a sister join up on three different days in May to commemorate their late father. They cook, eat, chat and joke about their father during a traditional Thai-Chinese ceremony. Their physical self-restraint contrasts sharply with the captivating and often absurd talks they have. Past, present and future blend subtly and are connected to the political context of Bangkok.

This Song Father Used to Sing (Three Days in May) by the Thai director Wichaya Artamat won a prestigious international prize for Best Performance in 2016. Artamat presents life as it is, without making it any better than it is or masking its estranging nature. The characters’ statements do not serve any logic, and neither do they lead to a clear end. Yet it is precisely this lack of direction from which Three Days in May draws its powerful message: the discovery of the bittersweet beauty in the endless repetition of life.

With follow-up discussion on the 20th of August at 4 p.m.

... another example of brilliant playwriting.

Author: Pawit Mahasarinand - The Nation

Tuesday 23 August

Available times

21:00

Wednesday 24 August

Available times

21:00

Thursday 25 August

Available times

21:00

About the artist

Wichaya Artamat is a founding member of For What Theatre. He studied film at university, but has long been captivated by theatre performances. He began working in theatre as a project coordinator for Bangkok Theatre Festival in 2008 and joined New Theatre Society in 2009, during which he grew to become a director recognised for experimental forms and unconventional approach. Wichaya is especially interested in how the society remembers and forgets its history through calendar days. 

Wichaya Artamat is particularly interested in exploring the way society remembers or forgets history through particular calendar days. In 2015, he co-founded For What Theatre and is also a member of Sudvisai Club and Collective Thai Scripts.

Credits
Script | Wichaya Artamat, Jaturachai Srichanwanpen, Parnrut Kritchanchai
Director | Wichaya Artamat
Cast | Jaturachai Srichanwanpen, Parnrut Kritchanchai
Scenography | Rueangrith Suntisuk
Technical Director / Lighting Design | Pornpan Arayaveerasid
Music Video | Atikhun Adulpocatorn
Pianist | Studio28 (Thailand)
Stage Manager | Pathipon Adsavamahapong
Producer/ Touring Manager | Sasapin Siriwanij
Production | For What Theatre
Courtesy of | Arai Arai, B-Floor Theatre, Sliding Elbow Studio