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FireFlyz | 43
SNOW
WHITE
Quickie
with
Chris Colby
L
EAVING
his job in banking
to pursue a career in theatre
was something that came
naturally to Chris Colby.
Coming from a family of
great performers, including
his great grandfather who
was a famous acrobat who toured the
world and had the glory of performing for
the King of Siam, Chris says that theatre to
him is a vocation – not something that he
chooses to do, but it’s something that he
has to do.
With 25 years of experience in directing,
Chris has made his way here in Malaysia
to present Snow White & The Seven
Dwarfs, The Musical that will be staged
at Amphitheatre @ Sunway Lagoon, and
we’ve managed to have a quick chat with
him about the production.
Tell us about Snow White... What
made you decide to work on the
show?
Well we’ve done fairy tales that are known
to people like Peter Pan and Aladdin. And
Snow White is really big at the moment,
being on TV series and box-office films.
It’s in the public domain and everybody
can do a story of Snow White. So I thought
it would be really good to do one here.
The settings… there’s a lot of forest
settings and the strategic location of the
amphitheatre – in the middle of an area
with lots of trees – it just fits the bill. In
Snow White, you have the dwarfs, the
magic, the sorcery, love and passion that
makes it a captivating story. What’s good
about it is that it appeals to the boys and
the girls. Cinderella and Sleeping Beauty
are more of what we call a girl’s thing.
But Snow White, I feel, is something that
appeals to everyone and we make sure it is
a family show where the whole family can
come and enjoy themselves.
Is there a twist in your version of
Snow White?
I suppose there’s a bit of twist because
we’ve added a comedy character called
Muddles who is Snow White’s friend.
So that’s a bit different as he’s not part
of the characters in the original version.
The dwarfs are quite hip and trendy too.
They’re dressed in bright colours and sing
trendy pop songs. And the mirror, you can
always put a twist on the mirror. I mean
I have a few ideas for the mirror, which
I can’t expose at the moment (giggles).
You’ll need to catch the show to find out.
What can we expect from the show?
You should be able to immerse in a fantasy
adventure. Lots of colours. Really good
singing. The girls, especially this year,
are quite extraordinary. The Huntsman,
Stephen, he’s got the most amazing voice.
He was in a show here a couple years ago
and his performance was incredible. Our
leading lady is quite outstanding, vocally.
So I think you can expect some really
good singing and the dancers are always
fabulous. We’ve got a really good team of
dancers this year. And the songs are very
up-to-date, we’re sure you’ll enjoy it.
Who is your favourite among the
seven dwarfs?
It has got to be Happy I suppose. I don’t
want to be Grumpy.
Do you have any concerns when
directing this show?
Always! There are two main concerns,
one being the safety of our people and
the other one is to be able to entertain the
audience. I want to make sure that they
understand the jokes. The sound and
lighting are very important and everything
has to come together. And I have to make
sure the audience feel that they have been
entertained for their money’s worth. That’s
what I really value when I’m directing
something. Think about the money people
are paying to see this musical!
What is it like to work with the
crew?
Oh, fabulous! I’m quite a hands-on
director, so I know quite a bit about
lighting and sound, and because of that
I appreciate other people’s jobs because
they aren’t easy. There are jobs that may
seem ordinary to the audience, but when
you see the effort that’s being put into it, it
is quite amazing. It’s very complicated so I
love working with the crew. These people
have so much knowledge about their job,
which goes unspoken, unsaid and unseen.
It’s a team and without one man the whole
machine breaks down, so we all have to
pull together and we will get there.
Did you handpick the cast and crew
for this show yourself?
The cast I did, the crew no. Some of the
crew members are from here, Sunway
Lagoon, and other members of the crew
were hired by someone else.
What is your most memorable
experience directing Snow White?
I don’t know yet (laughs). It’s been
only a couple of weeks, but I’m definitely
looking forward to the good times.
Any embarrassing ones you’d like to
share?
Embarrassing moments? There’re always
embarrassing moments, especially when
you’ve just opened the show for 12
months. In the beginning, there’re always
incidents where the set pieces are not
working or the lights won’t go out. Even
here, few years ago, there’s a big electrical
storm and all the sound and power went
off completely during the show. We had
to start that particular scene again, but the
audience understood that this is what live
theatre is all about. So in live theatre, there
can be embarrassing moments. When we
did Aladdin, all the chickens were running
around and so were the goats and the
goose. Anything can happen and that’s
why I like live theatre. It’s spontaneous.