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| It’s curtains up for LTA staff |
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To celebrate
its 10th anniversary, the Land Transport Authority
(LTA) rose to an unprecedented challenge and staged
a musical entitled “A Hampshire Tale”
all in the name of charity!
The one-and-a-half-hour musical played to a resounding
audience at the Singapore Polytechnic Convention
Centre on 26 March 2005.
The plot was about how the bus, taxi, MRT and the
car were each vying to be the best mode of land
transport in Singapore. All of them eventually realised
that they complemented each other to provide an
efficient land transport system that meets different
needs.
The title of the musical was inspired by LTA’s
future headquarters to be located at Hampshire Road.
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| LTA
staff, their families and beneficiaries
of AWWA TEACH ME Services put up a good
show! |
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Land transport policies and issues were creatively
interpreted and presented in a light-hearted manner
in the musical.
Everyday scenes were cleverly and humorously woven
into the musical. For example, a scene showing a
multitude of road signs provided comic relief. So
did the “banana route” scene where bus
commuters waited a long time for the arrival of
buses only for the vehicles to arrive in “bunches”.
There was also the “infamous magical disappearing
acts” of taxis around 11 pm together with
an enactment of the woes of a taxi driver on video.
Four songs were specially composed to reflect the
needs and aspirations of the main characters.
For example, one character sang of the “dream
of a future in which me and you can travel wherever
we want to go, safely and cheaply and (comfortably)”.
Another went: “We’re a city on the move,
we’re a people on the go, we’re a nation
in a hurry, walking’s way too slow”.
A third belted out: “By cab or by car…
by rail or by bus… we all agree that it’s
unanimous, running together, with integration helping
us to build a new nation”.
These lines aptly reflect LTA’s vision for
a world-class land transport system as well as its
mission to provide an efficient and cost effective
land transport system to cater to different needs.
Comic relief aside, the musical was also a fundraising
event for LTA’s 2005 adopted charity, the
Asian Women’s Welfare Association (AWWA) Therapy
and Educational Assistance for Children in Mainstream
Education (TEACH ME) Services.
More than $88,000 was raised through the sale of
tickets and memorabilia, generous sponsorships from
LTA’s corporate partners and big-hearted donations
from staff, their families and the audience. The
proceeds went towards purchasing a specially fitted
vehicle for the physically challenged clients of
AWWA TEACH ME Services.
The musical, which received a standing ovation,
was made possible with the keen support of partners
and friends, and the commitment of all cast and
crew, made up of staff, their families and beneficiaries
of AWWA TEACH ME Services.
Applauded Minister of State for Transport, Mrs Lim
Hwee Hua, the guest of honour on performance night:
“It’s obvious that a lot of hard work
went into the production and we are now beginning
to realise how much talent we have in our midst.” |
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By
LTA
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