| Kuala Lumpur Performing Arts Centre | |
|---|---|
A front view of klpac |
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| Background | |
| Location: | Jalan Strachan, Sentul, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia |
| Visitors: | 50,000 per year |
| Established: | May 2004 |
| Venues | The Actors Studio (TAS) at Lot 10, Performing Arts Centre at Sentul Park, |
| Performances: | Drama, Musical, Lecture, Dance, Film Screening, Participatory, Workshops, Traditional Performance |
| Also Called: | KLPac, Pentas Seni KL |
| Information | |
| Website: | klpac.org |
The Kuala Lumpur Performing Arts Centre (informally, KLPac) or Pentas Seni Kuala Lumpur in Sentul West is one of the most established centres for the performing arts in Malaysia. It is a non-profit company whose aim is to "cultivate and sustain the performing arts for the betterment and enrichment of communities within the Klang Valley and for the Nation."[1] Located in Sentul West Kuala Lumpur, KLPac was founded by Joe Hasham and Dato' Faridah Merican, below Dataran Merdeka.[2] Each year, KLPac and the Actors Studio plays host to more than a hundred major events, as well as many other workshops, classes, film screenings and more. Many of KLPac's events are self-directed, self organized shows, as KLPac also rents out their facilities, equipment other for individual performing arts events.
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In 1995, Faridah Merican and Joe Hasham created first privately owned and operated theatre in Malaysia below Dataran Merdeka, called The Actor's Studio at PlazaPutra. In 2003, flash floods in Kuala Lumpur destroyed the underground complex. In May 2004, Yayasan Budi Penyayang Malaysia, YTL Corporation Berhad and The Actors Studio Malaysia created a new jointly-owned platform to develop the performing arts, which became the Kuala Lumpur Performing Arts Centre (KLPac). KLPac opened its doors in May, 2005.
The impressive KLpac building has in fact a long history. The railway warehouse was in Sentul Park, a piece of land which came under YTL ownership with the acquisition of another company. The remodel features glass windows along the front of the building, as well as a walkway leading up to the building. In the 1800s, the building was a wood-crafting workshop and sawmill. In 1906, it became part of Sentul Works becoming the region’s most important railway depot & workshop. It then was bombed during tail end of WWII but was soon rebuilt. It was converted into a make-shift golf clubhouse in the late 1960s, but became abandoned in the early 1990s.
The four main areas of the Kuala Lumpur Performing Arts Centre are:
The Actor's Studio at Lot 10 has a 198-seater Hanamichi Thrust Stage. The Actor's Studio has been moved, from its original space in PlazaPutra, to Bangsar, to its current space on the rooftop of Lot 10.
The Actor's Studio in collaboration with Eastern and Oriental Bhd to establish a similar performing arts center in Penang. This will be Northern Malaysia's first non-profit arts center.[3] It will have a 300 seater proscenium theatre, a Black Box theatre, and rehearsal and training facilities.
KLPac regularly puts on theatre shows and musicals, which are directed and most of the time, written by KLPac's own directors-in-residence, such as Joe Hasham, Mark Beau de Silva, Christopher Ling, Kimmy Kiew, Kelvin Wong, and choreographer-in-residence Lex Lakshman Balakrishnan, and executive producer and director Dato' Faridah Merican.
Actors such as Patrick Teoh, Sharifah Amani, Ramli Ibrahim, Ahmad Zamil, Joanna Bessey, Mano Maniam, Datuk Syed Alwi, David Knight, Gavin Yap, and Colin Kirton, among many others have graced the stages of KLPac and The Actor's Studio. Notable Shows include Julius Caesar, Cinderella, Aladdin, Going North, Broken Bridges - The Musical, Electric Beckett, Bottom Top, The Fastest Clock in the Universe, Passion, The Odd Couple, Let’s Go Mamak, Tunku The Musical, ISMAIL The Last Days, Kaki Blue. In addition, shows such as Kudan Project Production, The Moon Speaks to my Heart, Macbeth, have been performed by touring theater companies on KLPac stages.
KLPac has also played a major role in events such as the HSBC Classics music festival, French Art Festival, Malaysian Dance festival, SHORT+SWEET festival and Urbanscapes.
The KLPac academy has served more than 1500 students who have participated in its classes, a number which includes students from a community outreach program to members of underprivileged communities. The academy believes that performing arts training "aids creative thinking and helps build confidence, listening skills, discipline and respect for others and for oneself."[4] Education Programs include Theatre for Young People (T4YP) as well as many classes on music, dance and drama and related concepts.
Main Article: KLPac Sinfonietta
The Kuala Lumpur Performing Arts Centre Sinfonietta (KLPac Sinfonietta) is a symphony orchestra created by the Joe Hasham and Dato' Faridah Merican. It presents performances within the Kuala Lumpur Performing Arts Center. A growing number of classically trained music students within Kuala Lumpur means that there is little shortage of volunteer musicians.