FEATURE

Yes, you're beautiful ...

BY NASA MARIA ENTABAN

NARCISSISM, self-love, vanity, call it what

you like but this theme of many a book,
movie and song is more a part of our lives
than we realise.
We slag those that condone it but, at
the same time, revel in the glory when
we are the centre of attention.
Aw, come on, you'd be lying if you
claimed self-indulgence was not an occasional hobby of yours.
Likewise, the media thrives on our
beauty-obsessed human society.
A fixation with youth is the subject in
Death Becomes Her, the dark comedy
starring Goldie Hawn and Meryl Streep as
rivals for one man's affection.
Desperate to retain their youthful looks
and to delay the aging process, the characters drink a magic potion and end up
spray-painting their skins.
Immortality is the result of their eventual overdose of cosmetic treatment, as
the two women become immortal yet
shatteringly fragile.
The disturbingly perfect new drama
that is aptly titled Nip/Tuck, features two
plastic surgeons running a practice in
Miami, Florida, home of many a beautiful
persons and their wannabes.

Aspiring perfectionists seek out their

expertise in changing what they don't
like about themselves, weaving webs of
highly-charged drama, rampant sexuality
and twisted morals which come together
to create a great show.
Salt n Pepa sing I am the Body
Beautiful, and, sorry folks, no prizes for
guessing what the meaning behind the
song is.
Same goes for Divine's I'm So Beautiful.
Get over yourself, girl.
Lamenting over perishing like a fading
horse are Alphaville, who in the song
Forever Young, sing, Youth is like diamonds in the sun, urging us to appreciate our youth before it's too late.
Books, too, are not exempted from this
theme. Oscar Wilde's The Picture of
Dorian Gray tells the tale of a man whose
vanity drives him to near-sanity.
Upset by the transient nature of beauty
and youth, he immortalises both by cursing a portrait of himself to bear the burden of age and infamy.
In view of all the media hype, undeniably, vanity and the obsession with youth
are everywhere.
Whether they work in our favour or
against it depends on how well we handle ourselves.

The Vain Game

MONDAY
5 June 2006

In the Fastest Clock In The

Universe, a theatre production
by KLpac that opened last
Friday, Gavin Yap plays a vain,
self-centered man. ANGIE
RETNAM asks him of any of
these traits translate into his
personal life and what is his
take on vanity?

I PERSONALLY dont relate to my character,

Gavin Yap said referring to Cougar Glass, the
character he plays in The Fastest Clock In The
Universe. I envy and wish I could be more
like him, to say the things that he says.
Cougar Glass, in the play written by Philip
Ridley, is a 30-year-old man who is obsessed
with himself working out, tanning under a
lamp, and celebrating his 19th birthday over
and over again each time he plans to lure a
young, innocent teenager into bed. In preparing for the role, Gavin had laid off alcohol
(mostly), watched his diet and working out in
the gym on a daily basis.
As such, Gavin feels that playing the character has made him slightly more vain in the
sense that he watches what he eats and
drinks, works out in the gym and checks his
progress in gym mirrors. That said, Gavin
doesn't feel like it's affected him that much,
although he feels that it has made him less
social.
Afterwards (after rehearsals) Im not the
most sociable person, I tend to be with
myself more to sort things out. But that
doesnt mean I go around treating my friends
badly.
As for vanity as a whole, Gavin feels that
there is vanity in everyone, and it can be a
good and healthy, such as ensuring one looks
presentable.
We all have our vain moments, there are
days we are all self-absorbed in work, personal problems and such.

However, he also feels that some people

are very extreme when it comes to their
looks.
There has to be limits, he said. He attributes this to societal pressures put on people
to make them feel unattractive. The reality of
the current world is that looks count for a lot,
which has led many people to resort to plastic surgery. But what does Gavin feel about
it?
Plastic surgery is a waste of time, he said
while admitting that it does have its pros and
cons. He understands how some people need
to go under the knife in some circumstances,
but he feels that people that look well put
together going under the knife is just
pathetic.
Playing such a vain character has not made
it easier for Gavin to understand each individual persons vanity, but it has made him
understand himself and his personal sense of
vanity more. He also has a little pet peeve:
dress codes. This jeans-and-shirt-kind-of-guy
has never cared about his dressing and hates
dress codes that disallow people entry to
places and events.
* Gavin Yap features in The Fastest Clock In
The Universe alongside Joanna Bessey, Faridah
Merican, Ari Ratos and Niki Cheong. The show
will run until Sunday, June 11 at KLpac. There
is a special RM30 student concession rate but
you will need to show you valid student ID.
Call 03 4047 9000 for ticketing details.