SINGAPORE: If left unexplained, Chinese painter Zeng FanZhi’s unique way of painting with four brushes simultaneously would be lost on most museum visitors.

But MediaCorp actor Qi YuWu’s guided tour of Zeng’s works has helped make paintings come alive for some museum newbies.

Qi is among the first to take part in the Singapore Art Museum’s Celebrity Tour programme.

Over 200 people had signed up Qi’s tour, although there were only 45 places available.

The lucky ones who attended Qi’s session said such tours made art less formidable to the man-on-the-street.

Many also enjoyed the nuggets of information that the actor shared about the artist.

The museum plans to do celebrity guided tours once every three months. – CNA/yy

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Simon says

Simon Webbe of Blue on his debut solo album and his acting career

“I am quite excited about the trip as it will be an occasion to meet my fans,” is what Simon Webbe says about his trip to India. The lead singer of the popular British boy band Blue is not new to the country though. “
;I came to India three or four years ago,” says the singer-songwriter, who just released his debut solo album, ‘Sanctuary’. However, this is Simon’s first music tour here as a solo artiste, made possible by the channel VH1 as part of its programme Handpicked.

Songwriter

Starting as a songwriter and singer with Blue, the Manchester native etched his own track in 2005 after the curtains came down on Blue a year ago with the chartbusting number “Curtain Falls”. Though his debut single, “Lay your hands” featured on the Top Ten charts in the U.K. for a while, he has so far not been able to outdo the record of the Blue numbers. The four-member band sold over 9.5 million albums and 3.5 million singles worldwide. “Being on one’s own is not so easy,” says Simon.

But having chosen to go solo, he has also changed tack, from pop to soul music. “I am getting older you see,” says the 28-year-old with a laugh, adding, “Now my fan base is from six to 86, or may be 106.”

As a songwriter for Blue, he “went by what the market demanded. Also, we were boys then and did stuff the boys did. Now it is different.” This justifies his shift from the “All Rise” days to the slow, soulful theme song, “Ride the Storm” that he recently composed for the Hollywood flick Fantastic Four.

Alongside his music career, Simon is also an actor. We saw him sharing the big screen with Jennifer Love Hewitt in The Truth About Love sometime ago. Next in line is Rolling With The Nines. But Simon says his acti
ng career is secondary.

“My music is more important. I act when I can take out off,” he says. With ‘Sanctuary’ out now, is he working on his next album? “I am always working on my next album. I am always writing songs,” he says. Good news, fans?

SANGEETA BAROOAH PISHAROTY

Hindu On Net

Oleh SHAZRYN MOHD. FAIZAL

SETIAP hari, mereka berceloteh di radio dan menghiburkan para pendengar dengan lagu-lagu kesukaan pendengar.

Saat mereka menghiburkan para pendengar, ada kalanya kita terlupa bagaimana pula mereka ini menghiburkan diri sendiri.

Kalau ingin tahu, beginilah gayanya apabila para penyampai radio Hot FM lepas geram menghiburkan diri sendiri. Fara Fauzana, Faizal Ismail, Sharifah Aleya, AG, Anne, Azura dan Fiqrie serta Pengurus Rangkaian Radio Media Prima Berhad, Seelan Paul baru-baru ini berkaraoke di Red Box, The Curve, Damansara.

Tapi bolehkah dia orang menyanyi? Sharifah Aleya dengan Anne, boleh tahan juga. Yang lain-lain tu, kira okeylah.

Alangkah bagus kalau bakat-bakat terpendam penyampai-penyampai radio Hot FM ini disiarkan secara langsung di stesen radio itu.

Kasihannya Ikhwan. Tidak dapat bersama melepas geram di pusat karaoke itu kerana terpaksa berada di konti.

Utusan Malaysia

Oleh WANDA IDRIS

PADA pukul 8.30 malam ini, empat finalis akhir So You Think You Can Dance bakal berdepan realiti siapa antara mereka yang terbaik antara yang terbaik.

Dipancarkan melalui saluran 8TV yang bersiaran secara langsung dari sebuah kelab, Ruums, Life Centre, Kuala Lumpur, salah seorang daripada mereka bakal bergelar juara sulung program realiti tarian itu dan seterusnya menggondol hadiah kemenangan dalam bentuk wang tunai sebanyak RM50,000.

Bukan itu sahaja, juaranya juga bakal melakarkan nama sebagai antara salah seorang penggerak pementasan muzikal My Name is Remy… The Life, The Love & the Inspiration di bawah bimbingan Datin Seri Tiara Jacquelina.

Tentunya setelah melalui masa-masa sukar – dua hari sesi ujibakat, tiga hari ujian Bootcamp dan lapan minggu mengharungi latihan dengan genre tari berbeza – tiba ke peringkat ini, setiap seorang daripada mereka menjanjikan sajian terbaik.

Pun begitu, acara yang dikendalikan oleh Juliana Ibrahim bersama Jehan Miskin serta diserikan dengan persembahan istimewa Reshmonu dan Joe Flizzow itu nanti bakal merubah rutinnya.

Berbeza sebelum ini, mereka menari secara berpasangan (lelaki dan wanita) dengan genre tarian pilihan, bagi pertandingan akhir nanti, peserta lelaki bakal berentap sesama sendiri dan begitulah sebaliknya.

Setiap daripada mereka juga diberi peluang menghayun langkah dalam gerak solo melalui jenis tarian dengan lagu pilihan sendiri.

Dan para juri tetapnya Pat Ibrahim, Ramli Ibrahim dan Judimar Hernandez serta juri jemputan, Tiara Jacquelina diberi kuasa untuk memilih jenis tarian yang pernah dipersembahkan pada acara mingguan untuk dipersembahkan finalis secara berpasangan (lelaki dan perempuan).

“Kami menjanjikan yang terbaik dan teristimewa pada malam itu,” demikian kata Pengurus Besar Pembangunan Perniagaan, Pemasaran dan Komunikasi 8TV, Lam Swee Kim dan dipersetujui Penerbit Eksekutifnya, Sunil Kumar pada satu sidang akhbar memperkenalkan Top 4 finalisnya baru-baru ini.

Dan keempat-empat Top 4 – Alam, Dennis, Sue dan Brancy – pula mengakui sudah bersedia bertarung sesama sendiri untuk menjadi yang terbaik.

Selami hati mereka untuk berdepan dengan realiti malam nanti serta impian mereka sekiranya memenangi RM50,000.

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LOS ANGELES – Oscar-winner Russell Crowe is to star alongside Leonardo DiCaprio in a new thriller about a hunt for an Al-Qaeda bomber, entertainment press reported on Thursday.

New Zealand-born Crowe will play a manipulative CIA spymaster who teams up with an agent played by DiCaprio in the film “Body of Lies,” which will be directed by Ridley Scott, reports said.

The film is an adaptation of a novel by David Ignatius. Filming will get underway later this year, according to Daily Variety and the Hollywood Reporter.

Crowe, who won an Oscar in 2001 for his performance in “Gladiator,” has worked regularly with director Scott in recent years.

As well as “Gladiator,” the 43-year-old has just completed Scott’s “American Gangster,” due out later this year, and will also team with the director in a revisionist Robin Hood movie “Nottingham.” AFP/rose

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