19th-century drama in pitch-perfect Mandarin

IN this day and age when the democratic system is prized as the most ideal political system, a Norwegian playwright's 19th-century drama of how the majority can be manipulated to vote for wrong provides a thought-provoking counterpoint. And ensemble theatre group Nine Years Theatre (NYT) brought the points even closer to home by performing it in Mandarin.

This is why classics are classics - they have that timelessness that allows them to be re-adapted to contemporary settings. And how a good ensemble of actors can hold your attention for two straight hours, even if the seats at the National Museum Theatre don't have the cushioning to hold out for so long.

NYT's co-founder and artistic director Nelson Chia did a great job with Ibsen's An Enemy of the People - firstly by his translation of the play into contemporary, everyday yet elegant Mandarin; and with the staging, striking a balance between realism and stage craft required for the play. Arguably, in the Singapore theatre context, this kind of realism could practically be seen as "experimental".