ARTS 11

Mainland minister Xi Yan (played by Michelle Krusiec) and American businessman Daniel Cavanaugh (Alex Moggridge, here and bottom left with Krusiec) explore the language barrier in Chinglish; playwright David Henry Hwang (bottom right). Photos: Berkeley Repertory Theatre, Kevin Berne

PREVIEW
The Wonders of Ancient Mesopotamia Hong Kong Museum of History Mention the word tablet today and a sleek portable computer comes to mind. But back in the days when writing had just been invented around 3,300-3,000BC during the Mesopotamian civilisation tablets were big slabs of clay on which quantities of goods and products were marked. They are also among historys earliest records on how a society was organised and divided into ranks. Some of the worlds oldest tablets are now on show at the Hong Kong Museum of History as part of its exhibition The Wonders of Ancient Mesopotamia, which runs until May. Jointly presented by the Leisure and Cultural Services Department and the Trustees of the British Museum, the 170-plus artefacts illustrate significant chapters of Mesopotamian history from around 3,500BC to 539BC: the birth of cities in Sumer, the powerful military empire of Assyria, and the development and legacy of Babylon. According to Sarah Collins, an archaeologist and curator for early Mesopotamia at the British Museum, all the objects chosen for the exhibition come from the very origin, the heart of Mesopotamia, a region that is known as Iraq today. They range from small seals to large stone sculptures that lined the internal walls of palaces. The museums collection is the result of early British excavations in the Middle East, some dating back as far as the mid-19th century. Another edition of this show has already toured to Melbourne, Australia, and will move on to Toronto, Canada, after its Hong Kong stop. The history of Mesopotamia spans many thousands of years but Wonders begins with one of the greatest inventions the civilisation contributed to: writing. Among the oldest objects in the exhibition is a writing tablet. The writing system that was invented in Mesopotamia is called cuneiform, says Collins, while the writing itself was a series of impressions made by a cut reed on the clay. Once cuneiform was fully developed, it was almost unrecognisable from its [origin], the curator says. It was developed for administrative purposes to start with, to quantify amounts of animals and food products, which [formed] the basics of the Mesopotamian economy their agriculture and livestock. But it soon developed as a script so that it could be used for all kinds of writings and to convey different languages, Collins says. Cuneiform is not a language but a writing system like the alphabet. One clay tablet, which dates from about 3,300BC, shows a list of large amounts of barley that were given out to high-ranking officials in the order of their importance. So this tablet is all about quantity, some of the earliest tablets were about rations to workers and amounts of commodities, Collins says. The [person recorded on the tablet] was known to be an official working in administration, mostly to do with barley and beer. Beer was another big commodity that was rationed to workers and given out to people. So this tablet in the exhibition is one of the earliest. Another highlight is a gypsum panel from Nineveh, North Palace, showing King Ashurbanipal hunting lions in his chariot. Kevin Kwong HK Museum of History, 100 Chatham Road South, Tsim Sha Tsui. Mon, Wed-Fri, 10am-6pm; Sat, Sun and public holidays, 10am-7pm. Closed Tue. Admission: HK$10. Inquiries: 2724 9042. Ends May 13

An administrative tablet showing allocations of barley. Photo: The Trustees of the British Museum

REVIEW
Art Fair Philippines 2013 door. Tai Quai sister open door. So, will not close. Now you know. The earnest Daniel is played by Alex Moggridge, who initially consults with mainland-based expat Peter Timms, played by the trilingual Brian Nishii. Ive been with the show since its inception, says Nishii. David called me out of the blue when he was still developing it, after he heard that I spoke Chinese. Nishi was an understudy in the earliest productions. Japanese by birth, he studied Chinese in college and is now fluent. Im a big language person so any sort of multi-language production always excites me. And any chance to work with David is not one that any Asian-American actor would want to turn down. Despite the numerous times Nishii has played the part of Peter, he says he still relishes being able to come out, night after night, and be a part of the on-stage conversations and scenarios that get the biggest laughs from the audience. Its a really fantastic play, and brilliantly written, and theres not a lot out there that speaks so smartly to current affairs, he says. Nishii says he and his co-cast members have considered how the play might go down in Asia. It might certainly be different than your average American crowd, he says, but its an interesting current play and theres plenty of humour on all sides of the language barrier. The future of the production after its Hong Kong run is yet to be determined. Fan says there have been enquiries from possible promoters in Taiwan and Singapore, and is hopeful Chinglish will at some point get a showing in most Chinesespeaking Southeast Asian countries, as well as in countries such as Australia and Canada. There are also ongoing talks with companies in the West End, while there are plans for it to run in Boston and Houston. We are hoping this Hong Kong event will be our launch pad, a way for us to find a producing partner who can take the piece on in whatever way they would like to produce it, Fan says. Silverman agrees that while playing on the mainland might be a long shot for now, there remain places such as Macau and Singapore. Its our desire Davids and mine that this will play to as large an audience as possible. thereview@scmp.com Lyric Theatre, Academy for Performing Arts, Fri-Mar 6, 8pm, SatMar 3, also 3pm, HK$200-HK$580 Conveniently located in Manilas central business district across the road from the reputable Ayala Museum, a temporary partitioned and air-conditioned floor in a car park building housed 24 galleries and art spaces for the inaugural Art Fair Philippines 2013 that ran earlier this month. The fairs transformed car park reflected a similar turnaround in the recent fortunes of the Philippines. Trickie Lopa, one of the fair organisers, said the country is experiencing great optimism, with the government tackling corruption, an economic resurgence and a vibrant art market. While Lopa acknowledged that the Philippines was outside the geopolitical radar of the international art world, Manila had a strong art scene of established commercial galleries, mature collectors and philanthropic private art museums. Through offering better arts infrastructure, including fairs, and tapping the worlds interest in Asia as a growing art market, the Philippines could easily increase its attraction as an arts destination. A refreshing aspect of the fair was the site-specific and special displays mounted by the organisers and some galleries. Mo Spaces display of small, affordable art objects by well-known artists, including Geraldine Javier, Agnes Arellano, Roberto Chabet and MM Yu, quickly sold out. Simply displayed on a long tabletop, these modest objects became greater within their grouped synergy. Yus index-card box of archived small photographs was intended to be handled, while in the nearby Manila Contemporary stand a similar display of her street photographs of crucifixes, candles, and a variety of baby Jesus statues were simply shown as a DVD slide-show. A chaotic grunge installation of street-type art and flotsam was jointly presented by newly opened galleries B.A.R. and 1335 Mabini, reflecting their house style of influential mid-career artist Manuel Ocampo and the younger Jayson Oliviera. In contrast, Tin-Aw gallery featured Mark Justiniani, whose new works were precisely constructed, eerie and unsettling constructions using mirrors, lurid plastic and lights to give an endless-in-space, 3-D sci-fi effect. The fairs three commissioned installations added a nicely critical edge: the Joseph Cornell-like memory boxes seamlessly housed in crates by Norberto Roldan; Hong Kong auction favourite Ronald Venturas ethnographic sculptural reinterpretations of the bulol, a central Philippine mountain deity; and, Gabriel Barredos expansive Asphalt installation. Demonstrating the depth of Philippine art was representative work by modernist masters Arturo Luz, Lee Aguinaldo, Onid Olmedo, Vicente Manansala and Ang Kiukok at Galleria Duemila and Salcedo Auctions. And to further appreciate the impressive Philippine art story, the Metropolitan Museum of Manilas expansive survey of Philippine art of the past hundred years, The Philippine Contemporary, opened during the fair and will remain on show for the next year. John Batten

Gabriel Barredos expansive Asphalt installation at the Philippine fair.