Office Workers Turn Into Zombies In This Funny Musical About The Dangers Of Overworking
'The Working Dead' is a must-see musical.
By Sukhbir Cheema — 21 Oct 2024, 03:25 PM
To Malaysian playwright Terence Toh, "corporate zombie" is a phrase that evokes a striking image of a shambling corpse, devoted only to work
Sometime in 2018, he sat down and thought about what it would be like to be an actual corporate zombie, and that's when he got the idea to stage The Working Dead, a musical about Edwin, an employee in a corporate firm who is literally worked to death by his heartless boss.
When the musical was staged in 2019, it was nominated for 13 Boh Cameronian Arts Awards in the Musical Theatre category, ultimately winning three.
Five years on, Terence, together with his team at KULT Productions, will be restaging the musical from 8 to 10 November at PJ Performing Arts Centre (PJPAC).
The musical comes with 20 original toe-tapping songs alongside plenty of creative updates from the first staging
For starters, there are several new elements in the choreography and music direction.
"Certain scenes have been tightened, lines have been edited, interactions have been moved, and jokes edited and modernised: for example, there used to be references to using 'Skype', but they are all now 'Zoom'," Terence explained.
The musical will also star several new cast members, including Adry Nasution, Amirah Redza, Brian Cheong, Colin Kirton, Ida Mariana, Jewel Chen, Jonathan Lim, Khoo Yan Yu, Lee Sher Maine, Rachel Liu, Ronnie, and Salma Zafri.
It will also feature an ensemble from the Dignity Foundation, a non-governmental organisation that provides holistic care and education for urban poor children in Kuala Lumpur.
What remains the same is the main message of The Working Dead: the dangers of overworking
Terence said these were elements that didn't require any updating.
"A lot of the story’s subject nature about overworking and hustle culture is still as relevant today as it was in 2019," Terence said, adding that those who struggle with balancing time between work and their loved ones will be able to relate to The Working Dead.
"I hope the musical inspires them to make changes in their lives for the better," he added.
The Working Dead will run from 8 to 10 November 2024. Tickets start at RM80 and can be purchased here.
