Singaporean-born playwright and performer Merlynn Tong has never been afraid to mine her own story for the stage. But with her latest work, Congratulations, Get Rich! premiering at Brisbane’s La Boite Theatre as part of its 100th anniversary season, she’s turning the dial all the way up.
Equal parts karaoke fever dream, family reunion and cultural celebration, the musical-comedy follows Mandy, a 38-year-old woman facing ghosts, both literal and metaphorical, as her mother and grandmother reappear in a wild night of song, secrets and spectacle.
We sat down with Merlynn to talk about the lived experiences behind the show and what it means to bring Singaporean culture to the stage.
Q: CGR is a brand-new work. Can you give us a glimpse into the storyline?
It’s a wild, hopefully hilarious and explosive production that reveals the messy joy of being alive, based on some of my lived experiences – plus a lot of imagination! There is Karaoke, original songs, dancing and of course, ghosts!
We meet Mandy and her partner on the Opening night of her brand new karaoke business. But no one has shown up, her love life is crumbling, and she’s turning 38-years-old (an age she absolutely dreads).
When customers finally arrive, Mandy soon realises that they are her mother and grandmother, except both are ghosts and all three multi-generational women look the same age. What ensues is a night that will define the rest of all of their lives (and afterlives!).
Q: Could you please share a bit about what inspired the work?
I grew up in Singapore in the 90s where my parents owned, and often entertained at, karaoke bars and nightclubs. My mum would sing heartfelt ballads while my dad would perform outrageous dance numbers. I desperately wanted to be a part of their world.
I’d visit them in the afternoons before the doors opened to explore each of the karaoke rooms – often still covered in sweat, smoke and liquor from the night before. Each felt like an entire universe filled with love songs, joy and heartache.
When I was six my father died of cancer and my entire world slipped away. My mother did her best to keep everything afloat, but grief consumed her and by the time I turned 14 she had taken her own life. I heard rumours that my grandmother may have passed the same way.
Now, reaching the same age my mother was when she died, I often reflect on that lineage of women, on what I’ve inherited and what I carry. Those reflections became the heart of Congratulations, Get Rich!
Q: How did you shape the characters and what will audiences love about them?
This play straddles the line between autobiography and fiction. I’ve based the characters on real people in my life, yet they exist in a narrative that is outrageous, fun and larger-than-life.
The character I play, Mandy, is a heightened version of myself. My mother’s character is drawn from the woman I remember, while my grandmother is built from whispered stories and tales of Singaporean female gangsters from the 1960s. My on-stage partner is played by my real-life partner, Zachary Boulton.
I hope audiences will love seeing these relationships unfold. They’re messy, chaotic, funny and tender, all at once.
Q: What does it mean to you to bring your Singaporean culture to the stage for Australian audiences?
It means a lot to me. I really believe that representation matters. By setting the play inside a Singaporean karaoke, getting to celebrate how we sound, our relationships, revealing our cultural customs and beliefs whilst having fun with it all, I hope we have audiences that will truly feel seen while watching the show.
I would love it if this production showed people of all cultures and backgrounds that their story is important and valid.
Q: You’ve had a long relationship with La Boite Theatre. How does it feel to premiere this work during their 100th anniversary season?
La Boite Theatre is where I made my mainstage debut in Straight White Man by Young Jean Lee. To return now as a playwright and performer with a show that is so deeply personal to me during their 100th year is an absolute dream come true.
Q: What do you hope audiences will take away from Congratulations, Get Rich!?
When I’m on stage, in some ways I feel like I’m back in the body of the little girl running through karaoke rooms, listening to my parents’ laughter as they sing and dance to an empty space waiting for the crowds of Singapore to pour in. It’s a mix of euphoria and grief all at once, and that’s what I hope audiences feel.
While the production explores themes of grief, memory and intergenerational trauma, it does so through karaoke, music and comedy. I want audiences to laugh and have fun, I would love for them to feel something – walking away thinking about their own families, their own ghosts, and the stories that shape them. If they leave humming a karaoke tune… even better!
The world premiere of Congratulations, Get Rich! premiers at La Boite Theatre from 4 –20 September.
Proudly Australian owned and operated