2009/11/09
DENNIS CHUA
The spiritual musical Two From Galilee soars with a tale of a pair of lovers destined to change the lives of generations coming after them. DENNIS CHUA writes.
In the same village, Mary’s childhood friend Joseph (Low Tzu Liang) is urged by his parents Jacob (Caleb Tan) and Timna (Cheah Jan Mie) to settle down, and this is reflected in the powerful song What Are You Waiting For?
Mary’s parents Joachim (Colin Wong) and Hannah (Patricia Ngo) line-up a series of suitors for their only child, but Joseph is not on their list.
When Mary chooses him, her parents are not pleased, but eventually accept her decision.
Meanwhile, Caleb falls seriously ill, and announces his dying wish for Joseph and Mary to be together.
Poh is clearly the star of the show, and she portrays Mary as sweet but strong with vocals to match. Mary also loves her parents dearly.
Her most defining moment in the musical comes when she delivers Mary’s Prayer, a heart-felt, spiritual song amidst a “night of shining stars”.
Both Wong and Ngo also excel as Mary’s parents.
First-timer Low is also commendable, though less expressive than Poh.
The same can be said of Tan and Cheah, even though Cheah gives Poh a run for her money in the vocals department.
Joseph’s defining moment, which Low executes with gusto, is the deathbed scene of Jacob.
Here, Joseph’s Prayer is performed with a passion that moves the audience to tears.
Some scenes of the musical are strikingly similar to many a Broadway play, particularly Fiddler On The Roof, West Side Story and Oklahoma.
The powerfully inspiring song All I Ever Wanted, played at the beginning and end, has a strong resemblance to Oklahoma’s Oh, What A Beautiful Morning.