'Orang Ulu' dance performed by Borneo dancers. Photography by David Xie.
The Otago Malaysian Students' Association (OMSA) musical theatrical performance, titled Malam Malaysia 2016 - Against the Current, was a sell-out success this year with a gathering of about 470 at the Teachers College Auditorium (TCOL) on the 3rd of September. 113 University of Otago Malaysian students formed the cast and crew with 25 of them from the Otago School of Pharmacy.
“The cultural night aimed to promote and showcase the diverse Malaysian culture to the locals through song, dance and drama.” Says fourth year pharmacy student and Vice-President of OMSA, Faizul Abdul Rahman.
Songs and dances with Malay, Chinese, Indian and Borneo influences were infused into the production that told a tale of a time traveller, Admiral Zheng (played by School of Pharmacy student, Boss Katchapanan). Admiral Zheng time travelled 800 years into the current 2016, finding himself in Malaysia where he encountered love and was introduced to Malaysian culture.
'Sleeve Dance' performed by Chinese dancers. Photography by David Xie.
Otago School of Pharmacy students took care of many of the major roles in the production. Faizul Abdul Rahman (P4),Traditional Dance Choreographer, a minor acting role and gathering sponsorship; Hamish Lou (P4, Props Manager; Andy Tu (P3), Backstage Manager; Clausanta Paul (P4), Borneo Dance Choregrapher; Jayanthi Vijayakumar (P4) and Nadiah Dahlan (P4), Malay Dance Choreographers and Abigail Paul (P4), Videographer.
Faizul Abual Rahman took on the role as Vice-President for OMSA this year and is involved with liaising with Malaysian JPA as well as IMU students before they arrive in New Zealand. OMSA also conduct pharmacy information sharing sessions where seniors share tips on how to excel and adapt to the study style in New Zealand.