Kuah Jenhan - Like This Like Dad 2.0

Went to see the reworked edition of Kuah Jenhan's show dedicated to his late father, "Like This Like Dad 2.0" at PJ Live Art's Cabaret space. Thankfully I didn't have to go by my lonesome this time as a former collegemate also wanted to go and was also free on opening night.

As it was free seating, we finally went upstairs about half an hour before, and then we saw this... 

Who else was there? We saw bare faced Joanne Kam, Nell Ng and (perhaps not-so bare faced? If she was, then life is unfair) Carmen Soo.

It didn't help that it was balmy outside and stuffy on the inside (the AC was not working). If you thought you would find sweet cold relief inside, you would be wrong. I can't be the only one that was fighting the urge to pass out. 

Cupboard and old school radio

I don't know how long the cupboard had been occupied (since there's no backstage area), but I have to give Jenhan props for being in there for as long as he did as people were making their way in. 

Waited for what seemed to be a long time for the show (as an audience) to start. Maybe there were communication/timing problems? I suppose it was a good thing that we got the "this is a workshop performance" disclaimer at the start then... :P 

Of all his shows I've seen (I sound like a stalker/groupie just typing that), Like This Like Dad was the only one I had not seen. Both because I (probably) didn't have the time to then and because of the subject matter. It's probably his most personal material because it's about his family (how his parents met, the sibling resentment of his younger sister [which I can totally relate to, though I didn't have the luxury of having 4 years of being the only child], his dad's passing...). I don't know if I would want my own mother to attend, so props to Auntie (which no one knew was present until her son on stage pointed her out).

One minute I was crying tears of laughter, the next I was fighting the urge to cry for reals, because it got really close to home. My friend also concurred with me there as he also lost his father some time ago himself. With the tail end of the cold still happening and the stuffiness of Cabaret, I was fighting to retain both my dignity and my bodily fluids :P 

The material is okay for local audiences with the local-ish references, but as he's taking the show to Australia the next couple of months, I don't know that'll go. Unless it's mostly Malaysian expats and/or PRs and citizens of Malaysian origin, maybe...?

Because it was Cabaret space (and less seating compared to the Theatre), the rest of the run is pretty much sold out at this point. 

Stray observations: 

• Today I learned that my friend and Jenhan were in MBS together, and that he still remembered him from back in the day.
• Hilariously enough, friend thought the show started at 7.30 p.m. and had rushed like mad to Jaya One, only for me to tell him (over FB Messenger) that it only starts at 9 p.m. So the (poor?) guy killed his extra two hours hanging out at Frontera for dinner. At least that's where I found him after picking up the tickets myself when I finally got there after 8 p.m. 
• Also found out my friend and the owner of Frontera also go way back.