After 3 sell-out shows in 2016, The UNC Team returns to Live House for ‘United Nations of Comedy 2 – The World Warriors’. A show which once again celebrates the rich diversity of comics in Malaysia. Featuring the best expat-comedians in Kuala Lumpur, hosted by Singaporean Sam See as well as locals Luwita and Shaz, United Nations of Comedy 2 promises to once again unite Kuala Lumpur through Laughter Date: 18 & 19 March Time: 8.30pm Venue: Live House KL Tickets: RM35 online, 40rm at the door http://unckl.peatix.com/ Featuring: Sam See – Singapore (Host) Based in Singapore, Sam See is part of the new wave of stand-up comedy in the region, bringing his own style and youthful charm to audiences regionally. He has performed in numerous comedy festivals in Asia, including the Singapore Comedy Fringe Festival and the Magner’s International Comedy Festival. In 2014, he made it to the finals of the Hong Kong International Comedy Competition, which lead him to performing at the MGM Macau with 2012 America’s Got Talent’s First Runner-Up Tom Cotter. JUSTIN HEYES – United Kingdom Arguably one of the UK's most loveable exports, Justin's honest reflections of his own experiences never fail to entertain a diverse array of audiences. Justin got his start in comedy, writing for other UK comedians at just 16 years of age. Taking to the stage himself during his university years, he racked up an impressive number of shows across the country before moving to Malaysia in 2012. A crowd favourite, Justin has headlined a number of shows across Kuala Lumpur, while branching out to entertain audiences in Penang, Singapore, Cambodia and Myanmar. Justin has opened for international stars such as Marcel Lucont, Dana Alexander, David Smiedt, Paul Myrehaug, Tom Rhodes, Glen Wool, Ed Byrne, Dara O Briain and Gina Yashere. “He has a penchant for bursting Malaysian rooms with laughter” That Time Of Night on BFM89.9 “Spontaneous and energetic, Justin gives off the sense that he is ready to fly off on a tangent at any moment... And when he does it is comedy gold.” TimeOut KL Comedy Thursday Luwita Hana Randhawa – Malaysia (KL) Ever since bagging the Best Female Youth Newcomer Award at the 2012 Short+Sweet Malaysia Stand Up Comedy Festival, Luwita Hana Randhawa has made a name for herself in the local comedy scene for her acerbic and understated wit. She is a regular performer at comedy shows throughout KL. She has also performed at shows in Singapore, Cambodia, Hong Kong, London and New York and performed her first solo show, Nothing to be Done, at the 2014 New Zealand Fringe Festival. Luwita was included in the CLEO HotShots 2016 list, a sign of more things to come for this up and coming comic. Dan Tackage – Australia Dan has travelled all the way from Australia to try and add some sunshine to your otherwise pathetic lives. Now based in Kuala Lumpur, Dan has performed in several countries including Japan, Singapore, Philippines, Australia and Malaysia. His frequent travel gives him a steady stream of misadventures he can share with audiences. In Kuala Lumpur he has performed at Time Out Comedy KL, Live House, Comedy Kao Kao to name a few. Kinjo - Japan Kinjo is a comedy giant in his own right. Since starting his comedy career in Japan in 2010, he has shot to fame making appearances on both television and radio, while touring the country. In 2011, Kinjo won a Japanese comedy award and in 2015 his company (the largest comedy and entertainment agency in Japan) began to expand sending its biggest stars around the world, flying Kinjo out to Malaysia to perform here. A true performer Kinjo has entertained audiences in KL performing in English and Malay, and has demonstrated his musical and magical talents as well. Kinjo loves Malaysia. Shahrizan Ferouz (Shaz) – Malaysia (Sabah) Shaz has travelled all the way from the far off land of KK Sabah. Since arriving in KL in 2003 he has been involved in TV and radio and has been doing stand up for 5 years. In 2016 he appeared on Komediri and Sembang Teh Tarik. During his set he will educate you on the basics of Malaysian geography. Lesson 1: Sabah is part of Malaysia. For lesson 2 come and watch him perform. Sreeram Trikkur - India A walking stereotype from India, Sreeram is an IT engineer by day and comedian by night. Since starting his comedy last year, Sreeram considers himself a Malaysian comic and has performed in Malaysia and in Singapore.

Urbanscapes is one of the longest-running creative arts festivals in Malaysia. Since its inception 15 years ago, the aim of Urbanscapes has always been to bring together Malaysian creative communities from the fields of music, the arts, design, film and other creative disciplines. The festival has grown leaps and bounds, to become internationally known and attended. This year, Urbanscapes 2017 will go back to where it all started, in the heart of Kuala Lumpur. The festival will spread across three weekends (two and half weeks) in various parts of the city, to take advantage of KL’s glorious cityscape, and complement it with some creative shenanigans. We still believe that great things happen when people come together, so join us and be part of this journey.

Balletbase, an amateur contemporary ballet company based in the Klang Valley, will be presenting its first showcase since its revival in 2015, at the Damansara Performing Arts Centre (DPAC) from May 20^th to 21^st, 2017.  The performance is set to bring both classic and contemporary pieces on stage, including works from local and regional choreographers.   “Balletbase Presents…” brings the evolution and versatility of ballet to life on stage through a carefully curated repertoire that begins with classical ballet pieces and develops into more contemporary choreography. Some of the classical ballet pieces selected for the line-up include variations from Le Corsaire and Cinderella. On the contemporary front, Balletbase welcomes a piece titled Undertow, choreographed by Eli Jacinto, a celebrated choreographer in the Philippines. Jacinto is touted as “inventive,” and an “adept craftsman,” by dance critics, and is known to be one of the pioneers of the contemporisation of traditional movements and gestures in choreography. The showcase will also feature original pieces from local choreographers Lee Yupin and I-Lyn Tan, as well as Eli Jacinto’s daughter and protégé, Joelle Jacinto – Tan and Jacinto being Balletbase dancers themselves. The feature piece is titled Clockwork: Past, Present, Future – a 10-minute dance choreographed by ASWARA graduate and one of the most promising dancers of this generation, Mohd Fauzi Amirudin, who won the BOH Cameronian Award for Best Choreographer in 2013 and continues to create stunning pieces. The dance is based on clock-like movements, and its purpose to find a balance between tradition and modernity. The exploration for this work is inspired by the concept of watchmaking and is set in a past-present-future timeframe. Some choreographic elements are also derived from actions inspired by the sands of time in an hourglass and the swinging pendulum, indicating that time is constant and therefore change is constant. In showcasing the beauty of both classical ballet and contemporary dance, “Balletbase Presents…” aims to inspire young ballet students in Malaysia and enable them to see a future in the community, given that there are no regular professional ballet companies in the country yet. “Balletbase encourages young ballet dancers to evolve their artistry into a new genre – particularly one that makes use of their years of training,” commented Bilqis Hijjas, Founder and Artistic Director of Balletbase. “My biggest hope for this showcase, however, is to make people fall in love with dance and resonate with the passion and hard work that went into each piece – be it as just spectators, or as dancers themselves.” Showtimes for “Balletbase Presents…” are 8:30pm on Saturday, May 20^th, as well as 3:00pm and 8:30pm on Sunday, May 21^st.  Tickets are RM55.00 per person, or RM49.00 for DCard members, and can be purchased at the DPAC box office or online (www.dpac.com.my). For more information about “Balletbase Presents…”, visit the Balletbase Facebook page at

ILHAM CONTEMPORARY FORUM (MALAYSIA 2009 – 2017) 21 May 2017 - 8 October 2017 Level 5 / Tingkat 5 Curatorial Tour / Lawatan Bersama Kurator: 21 May, 11am -- ILHAM Contemporary Forum is a project exhibition which aims to explore what is currently happening in Malaysian arts and culture. Collaborative by nature, ILHAM has invited seven project curators — a range of professionals from various fields and positions, all under 39 — to select visual artworks and cultural projects, produced within the last eight years. This selection of over 35 artworks and cultural projects will be included in the Contemporary Forum exhibition. The exhibition will serve as a prompt (rather than a survey exhibition) to discuss and debate what has been happening over the last few years in the local arts and cultural scene. The seven guest project curators are Kat Rahmat, Mark Teh, Ridhwan Saidi, Ong Jo-Lene, Tan Hui Koon, chi too and Azzad Diah Ahmad Zabidi. The exhibition is facilitated by Gallery Director, Rahel Joseph, and guest facilitator, Lee Weng Choy. This exhibition is a pilot project which may become a regular platform for ILHAM. The Contemporary Forum aims to be an experiment and to ask questions. It is a series of enquiries from the ground level — lateral conversation between different voices. This exhibition will be a starting point for other activities, from public forums to workshops, which will further explore what is contemporary art and culture in Malaysia today. After the public forums and workshops, ILHAM will produce a publication documenting the processes and the activities of The Contemporary Forum. CURATORIAL TOUR Gallery tour highlighting key works from the exhibition ILHAM CONTEMPORARY FORUM. 21 May, 11am -- PAMERAN THE ILHAM CONTEMPORARY PROJECT MALAYSIA 2009 – 2017 The ILHAM Contemporary Forum, adalah sebuah projek terbaru dari Galeri ILHAM dengan pendekatan eksperimen meneroka dunia seni dan kebudayaan Malaysia, hasil gabungan professional jemputan dari pelbagai bidang dan jawatan, kesemuanya berumur di bawah 39 tahun, menghasilkan sebuah pameran seni. ILHAM telah memilih tujuh kurator projek iaitu Kat Rahmat, Mark Teh, Ridhwan Saidi, Ong Jo-Lene, Tan Hui Koon, chi too dan Azzad Diah Ahmad Zabidi yang ditugaskan untuk mengenal pasti lima karya seni atau projek budaya yang telah dihasilkan di dalam lingkungan lapan tahun kebelakangan ini (“projek budaya” termasuk filem, fesyen, persembahan, komik, rekaan dan sebagainya). Pameran ini akan dikelolakan oleh Pengarah Galeri, Rahel Joseph, dan pengelola jemputan, Lee Weng Choy. Pameran ini tidak bermaksud menjadi sebuah tinjauan aliran kontemporari, namun bertujuan untuk membuka ruangan debat dan perbincangan terhadap perkara-perkara yang berlaku di dalam dunia kesenian dan kebudayaan tempatan. Selain itu juga, ILHAM Contemporary Forum menggunakan pameran sebagai batu loncatan untuk mengembangkan lagi aktiviti-aktiviti seterusnya, dari forum umum sehingga bengkel, yang diharapkan dapat menjana lebih banyak lagi persoalan dan kajian terhadap dunia seni dan budaya Malaysia. Sebagai kesimpulan kepada pameran, forum dan bengkel yang diadakan, ILHAM akan menerbitkan sebuah buku yang mendokumentasikan segala proses dan aktiviti keseluruhan projek ini. LAWATAN BERSAMA KURATOR Lawatan yang dikendalikan kurator yang bertujuan memberi penerangan tentang pameran dan karya-karya penting di dalam pameran ILHAM CONTEMPORARY FORUM. 21 Mei, 11am