About Us
From an informal group that started in 2011, we have established ourselves as the only theatre company in Malaysia that focuses on Shakespeare’s works. Each year, we draw a diverse audience to watch Shakespeare performed live. We do so without running away from his language.
Our production in 2017, SD: Macbeth has traveled to 14 locations, performed more than 40 shows to over 6500 pairs of eyes. Apart from KL, we have traveled to Langkawi, Penang, Ipoh, Nilai, Seremban and Johor Bahru. And overseas to Manila, Philippines; and Seoul, South Korea.
It is our mission to take Shakespeare to every state in Malaysia, and eventually to all countries in Southeast Asia.
Beyond our annual Shakespeare Demystified series, we actively provide training and workshops based on the concept of “Learning Through Shakespeare”. We work with students from primary and secondary schools, colleges and universities to deepen their appreciation of the Bard, to improve their communication skills, or to explore various stage crafts, all rooted in Shakespeare’s text and works.
To contribute to theatre development locally, we also provide free training sessions to actors dedicated to honing their skills. We generously share our ideas, knowledge and experiences in making good theatre. We hope to help expand the pool of actors who are serious about their work, and who appreciate that true artists do not avoid hard work.
Accolades
Artists Residency at Shakespeare by the Sea, Halifax, Canada
2021
Special Mention for our participation in the 11th edition of Premio Internationale
“Il Teatro Nudo” di Teresa Pomodoro
2020
Storytelling of Macbeth selected by Asian Shakespeare Intercultural Archive for documentation and translation into Mandarin, Japanese and Korean
2019
Invitation and performance at the Korean Shakespeare Festival
2018
Invitation and performance at the Asian Shakespeare Association Conference
2018
Meet the Team
Lim Soon Heng
KLSP’s co-founder and chief producer, Soon Heng has been on stage a long time, with more than 70 productions under his belt.
Lim Kien Lee
Co-founder, producer, director, and actor, Kien Lee resigned from his office job in November of 2014 to focus on building the KL Shakespeare Players. A self-made actor, he learned all he knows through workshops, experience, and self-driven research.
Johnny Gillett
A storyteller, director, and actor hailing from the UK, Johnny “The Journey Man” Gillett has been in the business for over 30 years and in almost 40 different countries. Johnny lends his storytelling and training expertise to KLSP’s various productions.
Gregory Henno
An actor and director from France, Gregory Henno is also a master facilitator and trainer of Exchange Theatre, and thus is head of KLSP’s Exchange Theatre series for corporations and schools.
Zul Zamir
Resident actor and stage/production manager for the majority of KLSP’s productions, Zul Zamir was nominated for Best Supporting Actor at the Boh Cameronian Arts Awards for his role as Markus/Old Major in Kandang.
Teoh Jun Vinh
An actor, theatremaker and educator, Jun holds a BA First Class Honours in Acting from LASALLE College of the Arts, Singapore. Jun moved back to Malaysia in 2019 and joined KLSP full-time as a resident actor.
A Bit of Our History
The Inspiration
It all started in 2009, when klpac and the Australian High Commission invited Jeff Kevin, a director based in Tasmania, to conduct a three-week workshop on Shakespeare, titled From the Page to the Floor. At the end of the workshop, there was a showcase of excerpts from four Shakespeare plays.
The following year, Jeff returned to direct some of the participants in a pared-down version of A Midsummer Night’s Dream. The simple set, props and costumes changed the mind of both actors and audience about the Bard—that his words and the actors are sufficient to make us see with our mind’s eye; and, touch, taste, smell and hear through our non-physical faculties.
When Jeff could not return for the third consecutive year due to a lack of funding, four of the participants—Lim Kien Lee, Lim Soon Heng, Qahar Aqilah and Sandee Chew—together with Marina Tan decided to continue the legacy by staging a minimalist version of Shakespeare. After many brainstorming sessions, we came up with a unique format: an abridged performance of key scenes in original text, with a narrative glue in contemporary English. To manage audience expectations, we added the tag “Shakespeare Demystified” before the title.
The birth
With support from Joe and Faridah, together with the Kuala Lumpur Performing Arts Centre (klpac), in 2011 we staged our first production Shakespeare Demystified: Julius Caesar.
We got three more actors to join us to form a cast of eight.
We experimented with “ensemble directing”: whoever was not in a scene would direct it. If everyone was in it, then we would take turns to sit out and give our suggestions. It was not an easy process, since each actor came with his/her acting philosophies and background. We struggled to find a common language, and we argued a lot. But in the end, we were able to pull ourselves together to present a show.
We were also lucky to have Joe as the Artistic Director, who sat in with Faridah and some klpac staff at a preview, and gave us a most honest critique. Because of this we managed to improve the show before opening night.
The journey
Since then, we have been presenting one new play per year, exploring along the way various approaches to improve our productions.
Some of our discoveries are:
- A group of actors needs to share a common language. This means we need to train even when there is no production.
- Total democracy in a production is really exhausting. We need to have a director, better still someone who is not acting in the play. But this director needs to be open to actors’ ideas and suggestions, and knows how to incorporate them into his vision.
- Narration is a key part of our Shakespeare Demystified format. We need to find the balance between showing and telling the audience.
The future
Are we only going to perform Shakespeare? No.
We are constantly seeking opportunities to work in other genres and forms of theatre. Some are based on Shakespeare, others not.
For example, we narrated and acted excerpts in a Malaysian Philharmonic Orchestra concert, titled Celebrating Shakespeare (2016); we organized a workshop on making and playing with masks, conducted by UK-based artist Simone Tani; our director Kien Lee also acted in Nyoban Kan’s Butoh-take on Shakespeare’s Richard III; and directed Wooden Lives, a human-sized puppet show at Masjid Jamek LRT station under a project by Thinkcity.
But Shakespeare will always be our company’s main thrust. He will be the foundation of our training, and of our approach to theatre.
For over a decade, KLSP has been bringing theatre and Shakespeare to the youth and masses. KLSP is also the only theatre company that has performed in all thirteen states and two federal territories in Malaysia. We could not have done it without your interest and support.