Review: Dua Darah

 

When a Malay-Chinese Muslim returns to attend his aunt’s Chinese funeral during the COVID lockdown, buried memories and inner conflicts begin to surface — questioning where he truly belongs.

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It's been about two years since I reviewed a theatre show. Have I watched anything in between? Uh... the Internet tells me that the two shows I remember watching but not reviewing were staged before Yam Seng Lah so no, I have apparently not watched a theatre show in two years! 

Anyway, Dua Darah. I caught the 8.30pm show in Penang on Saturday, 11 April 2026 with members of the Ka-Ki Baca group. It has taken me this long to write this review because I have been procrastinating and being generally lazy. 

I don't think I have much to say about the acting side of things - all three performers fit their roles really well. At least, there was nothing I felt really nitpicky about, especially since their accents fit the characters so well (this is the thing that usually bugs me a lot). There's something to be said for the fact that, whilst primarily in Malay, this is a multilingual show. I ended up not reading the surtitles as much as I expected to because Hilyati's (playing the protagonist) enunciation is superbly clear and understandable (I have problems processing Malay slang/patois). The funeral medium (played by Teoh Chee Lin) spoke in a hilariously apt bahasa pasar and Chinese (Hokkien? Maybe? idk—I read the surtitles for those), whilst the Mother (played by Ho Sheau Fung) spoke a very Chinese-accented vernacular English/Manglish/rojak. The only thing that jarred me was when Ho started singing and I thought it was a Chinese song until I stared at the surtitles and realised she was... singing in Malay. Oops.

(Note: Even though the character was played by a woman, I'm going to stick with 'he' pronouns in the review per the synopsis since technically the funeral rites are supposed to be carried out by a male relative.)

The staging was minimalist, and it worked to focus the audience on the actors themselves, with the judicious use of lighting. Scene changes (to indicate the start of a new day) were marked by chanting (both Chinese ritual prayers and Arabic verses/prayers) and reflections in a sort of Greek-chorus type thing, punctuated by choreography. There's probably a better or more technical term to describe it, but I don't have the vocabulary for that. At any rate, I liked it because it solved Auditorium A's problem of not really having a proper backstage for actors to go in and out. So all three of them were onstage for the duration of the show. 

Overall, the show was fascinating—and thought-provoking—but the more I think about it, the more I feel that the ending was a little emotionally flat. There was a build up of sorts, with the thing about the nails. It rises and then it falls, it's really dramatic, and then I am left a little confused about what I'm supposed to take from that. I chalked this down to not actually understanding the significance of the events at the cremation. As I said after the show, I'm not actually Chinese enough for this.  

I connected much more with the Chinese-Malay protagonist, even though I am, as far as I can trace, 100% Chinese. For me, Dua Darah is no so much about racial tension, but about religious conflict or the dilemma of the recently converted—especially when one converts to a monotheistic religion that says performing another religion's rites are a sin in and of itself, no matter how pure your motives are. It can only be framed as a conflict between two bloodlines in Malaysia because of our problem of conflating race and religion here. If you're Malay, you are Muslim. If you're Chinese, you are Buddhist or Taoist. And yet everything the protagonist wrestles with around the funeral rites are things that have come up over and over again in the Chinese Christian community in Malaysia. They even directly mentioned the shared problem of Cheng Beng. I mean, obviously the Christians don't have it as bad—no halal or dressing laws to address—but there's still that tension of what you can and can't do, what you should and shouldn't. Because what's truly cultural and what's religious at this point?

In the end, Dua Darah was, for me, a reflection on the realities of colonialistic religions and how it tears you from your cultural roots in many ways, whether due to mixed blood (there's some unspoken racism to be unpacked there) or just due to conversion. It's recognition of yes, this happens, this happens all the time in various communities. It's an acknowledgement of the dissonance that racial alignment to religion causes in global/multicultural communities. For Christian converts, there's that need to distance yourself from Chinese culture, to become overly Western/White-presenting. For Muslim reverts, there's a need to prove yourself more Malay than the Malays. 

But how do you resolve it? It feels like there should be a middle ground somewhere, to be able to follow the tenets of the religion you now adhere to (or have chosen for yourself) while still honouring and respecting where you come from. The show does not offer any solutions. The aunt is cremated, the protagonist returns home, having completed the rituals for his beloved aunt whilst bearing the guilt of having sinned in doing so—and even if God can forgive him, I'm pretty sure society won't. 

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DUA DARAH

A Drama in Bahasa Melayu by Johan Othman (with English and Chinese surtitles)

Director: Chee Sek Thim

Playwright: Johan Othman

Music Director and Composer: Kang Su Kheng

Choreographer: Teoh Chee Lin

Performers: Hilyati Ramli, Ho Sheau Fung, Teoh Chee Lin.

Producer: Tan Hock Kheng

👉A ZXC Theatre Troupe production.

👉KL venue supported by Five Arts Centre

If you're in KL this weekend, you can catch Dua Darah at Five Arts Centre, GMBB.

 Kuala Lumpur
Date/Time:​
17 & 18 April 2026 @ 8:30pm
18 & 19 April 2026 @ 3:00pm
Venue: Five Arts Centre, 9th floor, GMBB, KL

 Ticketing
Individual Ticket: RM55
Group of Four: RM180

GET TICKETS HERE

Book Review: A River From the Sky | Ai Jiang

A River from the Sky by Ai Jiang
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

A River from the Sky picks up right after A Palace Near the Wind. Liu Lufeng is escaping the Palace near Feng with her younger siblings Chuiliu and Changqing, along with Geyser, also known as Exile Song. They are to meet Sangshu in Gear, but an encounter with the rebels disrupts all their plans.

This second novella of the Natural Engines duology is told in two POVs: Lufeng and Sangshu. On one hand, this gives us a deeper perspective of all the things that Lufeng has been completely unaware of. On the other, it makes for another confusing ride - we're not just grappling with the present, we're also having to come to terms with everything Sangshu has gone through in the years since she left Feng.

Where Lufeng had been almost passive, only stirring at last to try to save her younger siblings, Sangshu's story is one of both great ambition and betrayal. Sangshu caught up in all that progress and science seems to offer, only to find that gaining what she wants means giving up other things just as precious to her. These are presented as hard choices in the struggle for survival, and it's just not progress versus tradition, old vs new.

It's progress, but at what cost? Who (not just what) are you willing to sacrifice to get richer and more powerful? And is it truly worth it? But, as with the world we live in, everyone is complicit in the system and breaking away completely may have a higher cost than maintaining the status quo, no matter how terrible the system is.

There's layer upon layer of deception slowly being laid bare, and it should be exhilarating to finally discover what drives this world. And yet... after the build up in A Palace Near the Wind, the reveal here wasn't half as devastating as I was led to believe it would be. I found myself going, "Oh, that's it?"

Still, it's a gripping tale of surrender and sacrifice, and the desire to make the world a better place, not only for yourselves but for everyone - including your perceived enemies. Ai Jiang points out the interconnectedness of Feng, Glace, Clay, Engine; Wind Walkers and Water Shifters, Cogs and Land Wanderers, Natural Titans. Just like our world, no one place or people truly stands on their own.

Note: I received a digital ARC of this book from Titan Books via NetGalley. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

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Book Review: Strange Familiars | Keshe Chow

Strange Familiars by Keshe Chow
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Gwendolynne Chan really needs to make Dux to get that cushy ministry job and help save her family's struggling restaurant. Harrisford Briggs also really needs to make Dux, both because his father expects it, and to provide him an out from working at Magecorp after graduation. The two academic rivals hate the sight of each other... or do they? Either way, they need to work together to figure out the strange magical surges that's causing chaos and threatening their final year exams (and the rest of London).

Strange Familiars was a romp of a read. There's witty banter and snark, academic rivalry with close score-keeping, a grumpy talking cat (and other more exotic familiars), exploding magic, and lots of chemistry.

Chow does especially well in showcasing Gwen's troubles as a second-generation immigrant in the UK - being Manchester-born and raised, and yet expected to know everything about her Chinese ancestry, even rare mythological creatures like the qilin. Gwen deals with both subtle and not-so-subtle racism, plus the problems of being poor and trying to scrape by. She has tremendous drive (and pride), which plays off perfectly against Harrisford's ego.

But whilst Harrisford is rich and proud, he's also rather socially aware, or woke if you want to put it that way. Since Chow also writes in his POV, you get to know the real Harrisford behind the mask that he puts up for the public, getting both the insecurities and blindspots that plague him. And you can't help but like him because he's actually rather earnest and nice. And also rather vulnerable.

At any rate, the TENSION. (Also, reader note: this is firmly very New Adult, so there is on-page sex.)

Before you think this is just a romance, there ARE a lot of things going on in the background - magical surges, political intrigue, government coverups, and exploitation, all in the name of keeping the magic (and the money) flowing. Both mystery and romance have their parts to play and they feel perfectly balanced in drawing me further and further into the story.

I kinda missed this was a duology when I picked it up, so when I got to the end I was like no, nooo why? Oh, there's book 2. So. Now I gotta wait for book 2 *sobs*

Note: I received a digital ARC of this book from Ace via NetGalley. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

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Book review: Death Bringer | Sonia Tagliareni

Deathbringer by Sonia Tagliareni
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Viola Corvi hates her magic. The death magic has only ever taken from her - her father, her grandmother, and now her sister. Sylas Ronin, a poison mage, also hates death magic - for taking his mother from them. And then the two are thrown together in Gorhail Institute of Magic and must learn to work together if they are to achieve their goal - to find and stop the serial killer who's coming after Viola.

Despite the academia setting, Deathbringer is more enemies-to-lovers than academic rivalry. Besides Lyria's desperate attempt to master lifedrain theory, there is little actual studying going on in the book; everyone's too busy panicking when students start turning up dead. Besides, Viola is adamantly refusing to actually learn anything about magic, even if it will eventually help her, whilst Sylas is pretty much an insufferable, reckless, know-it-all with anger issues. Okay, both of them have anger issues, but Viola is just a smidge better at using her anger to further her goals.

Tagliareni is deft with her knife, whether it's the twisty murders that keep happening or the devastating secrets that stab like a knife to the gut. To be honest, there are (a lot of) times where Sylas' bullheaded recklessness makes me want to slap him, but Tagliareni layers on the emotions and the painful backstory so well that it often feels forgivable or, at the least, understandable. The dual POVs work exceptionally well for this - giving readers both sides of the story, so to speak, and presenting a sympathetic point of contact/information for both rival houses instead of making one better than the other. There's no clear "evil" house or strand of magic in this one, even if death magic is often seen as dark and scary.

Loyalty is a theme that's explored with great depth - whether personal loyalty to one's friends and loved ones or loyalty to one's house/magic. Blind loyalty is both encouraged and called out at differing times, but where it's most wrenching is when it's pitted against love. Sylas has to decide whether to act with blind loyalty to the House of Poison, or if his growing love for Viola will force him change his beliefs. Viola has no loyalty to any mage or house, but it's the various loyalties of family, friends, and lovers in the past that has placed her in this current situation - as the one person sought after for her unwanted magic and relic.

Altogether, it's a very tantalisingly twisty dark fantasy. Deathbringer has been one of the most enthralling reads of 2026 so far.

Note: I received a digital ARC of this book from Atria Books via Edelweiss. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

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#MusicMonday: Breathe | Jonny Diaz

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been obsessing with this song lately

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Breathe, just breathe
Come and rest at my feet
And be, just be
Chaos calls but all you really need

Is to take it in fill your lungs
The peace of God that overcomes
Just breathe
So let your weary spirit rest
Lay down what’s good and find what’s best
Just breathe

Book review: We Interrupt This Program | Randee Dawn

We Interrupt This Program by Randee Dawn
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

When I saw Randee Dawn's post that We Interrupt This Program was up on NetGalley, I tell you, I clicked that request button so fast. I loved Tune in Tomorrow, and this is another novel in the same magical universe!

The TROPE town of Seaview Haven is breaking down and Finch, an SCN intern, has wrangled an assignment to figure out what's wrong with it - so that he can prove his Unseelieness by dismantling it forever. But Winnie Arrowmaker, Siggy, and Martin are doing their best to prove to him that the town can still be saved. Can it?

We Interrupt This Program is a wild romp into a fantastical world and - at the same time - an insightful look into what it takes to be creative. At times, it feels a little meta - Winnie Arrowmaker is a writer of mysteries, and the Muses are involved - but as the book blurb says, "Winnie and Finch are going to have to tell a Truly Great Tale. Because, as they realize, real power lies not in the stories we watch, but in the stories we tell ourselves."

In this day and age when the great Threads fight of the day is whether it's ok to use AI for covers and for writing, it's validating to read something that's so honest about the struggles of writing something. (I was going to say "something worth reading", but who's the arbiter of what's worth reading? Everything written by humans is worth being read by someone.) And how it feels when your best work still isn't good enough. Will it ever be good enough?

In that same vein, Finch is also struggling to be good enough any anything. He's so convinced that his one Hideous Deformity makes him an Unseelie, despite all other indications, that he's willing to destroy his life and his friendships to prove it. And yet, he's...not really good at being naturally destructive? Neither is he good at being, well, Seelie.

Behind the hilarity and light-heartedness is a thoughtful exploration of how our perceptions of ourselves - and what we think others think of us - affect our behaviour, whether for good or for bad. And how best friends spur us to be the best of ourselves - but can also bring out the worst. And maybe we're not always just one thing, but many, in all our humanness.

Note: I received a digital ARC of this book from Solaris Nova via NetGalley. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

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WE INTERRUPT THIS PROGRAM releases on 3 March! Preorder here (affiliate link)

Book Review: The Shadow of His Hand | Benjamin Patterson

The Shadow of His Hand: Book One of the Markulian Prophecies by Benjamin Patterson
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

A princess, a soldier, and a baby set off to fulfil a prophecy that will save the Realm: The Mark must reach a place known as The Hand of God before Embracing's Day, or all is lost. The problem is, The Hand of God now lies in Jerikan territory-the same enemy who's trying to destroy them.

The Shadow of His Hand is an interesting read, but uses several tropes that annoy me greatly. YMMV, so ignore the star rating as you like.

As an epic fantasy, the novel delivers. Our heroes set off on an impossible quest and face all kinds of hardships. There's friendship and betrayal, love and loss, and politicking galore. They trek through what feels like the whole world - jungle, desert, and the open sea. It is quite a militaristic book, so if you're not one for battle descriptions, you may find some of that just a tad too detailed. As a medieval fantasy, it is, as expected, rather Euro-centric. There are weirdly modern-sounding words or phrases that pop up at times which, when set against some almost-archaic formal sentences, feels a little odd.

The most annoying bit about the worldbuilding is the racism. Because, of course, the dark-skinned foreigners are described as heathens, poor, uneducated, primitive, lacking in ambition, eat weird food, are possible cannibals, and none of them speak the common tongue. They are the plot device that turn up to help our travellers (at least twice!) out of the sheer goodness of their hearts. When all of them are captured by slavers - on a journey they are only on because they are helping them on the quest - only our heroes make it out. Fredrick never even thinks of saving the slaves caught in the hold. The worst thing about this is that the Princess herself has foreign blood - her mother (or maybe grandmother?) comes from the same geographic area.

Now we come to the part where YMMV. The characters and their relationships are the major pain points for me, mostly because I'm easily irritated by some of these characteristics or character flaws.

If Patterson intended us to very annoyed at (or even hate) High King Eldilin Mancott, then he did a superb job there. I have a thing for competent people in important roles, and the High King is NOT it. Eldilin is always whining about his duties and responsibilities and acts as if the whole Realm is on his shoulders, but he isn't even competent at carrying them out. It's his adviser who does practically everything for him, but he has the gall to complain that he can't be himself and he can't do ANYTHING for himself. He's pretty useless, imo, and probably thinks its a sin to be happy. And when people actually try to help him, like his wife, he rejects their help (You don't understand! It Is My Duty!).

His wife, Jaithe, is another whole matter. Their marriage was the most insta-est case of (one-sided) instalove I have seen in a while. I mean, she sneaks into the hall to see him because she wants to laugh at her sister and the other hopefuls who want to be chosen as High Queen, and then SHE SEES HIM AND IMMEDIATELY FALLS IN LOVE. Because he's such a sad, sad man and just needs a woman to truly love him and then he'll get better. Um no. This is how women get trapped in bad marriages because they think they can change their husbands through the power of love. I guess if you like that trope you might like their "romance". Where, tbh, he spends most of the time ignoring her and shutting her down for even attempting conversation. At least they haven't even consummated the marriage because she refuses to sleep with a man who doesn't love her. Good for her, but also LMAO.

TBH, the other case of instalove in this book, is between Fredrick, our hapless soldier, and Princess Kathryn, who he saves, but at least Fredrick is aware enough to figure he's just crushing because she's rich and beautiful AND A PRINCESS. he's such a glorious mess anyway, so that just adds to his quirks. (He thinks he's crushing, but the text really wants to imply it's true love, so take from that what you will.)

Final bit! This is touted as Christian fiction, so let's look at it from the lens of faith. The faith set up is interesting (implied British tone), where there is a God - Elan - and twelve Guardians. The Realm is supposed to believe in Elan, but generally, worship practices have somewhat shifted from Elan to praying to/worshiping the Guardians instead (feels like a swipe at Catholics). It's a classic apocalyptic set up transplanted into a fantasy world - the world is ending, and the prophesied one must save the Realm. Jerika has summoners, who work with demons - so, very Good vs Evil, God vs Devil.

Patterson is daring in a sense that of the people sent on the quest, both Fredrick and Kathryn have shaky holds on their faith in Elan. Even High King Eldilin, who is supposed to uphold worship of the true God, only sends them on the quest because he can't deny the evidence of The Mark. Focusing on Fredrick's journey, you can see how his faith in and reliance on Elan grows. Fredrick comes across as a second-generation Christian-type, who knows generally what he's supposed to believe, but not why, and his relationship with God is affected by his circumstances growing up. He starts with a faith not his own, but grows in it through the hardships he faces in trying to fulfil the quest. Elan does step in to save the day several times (through various means), and the set up is good enough that it feels organic to the plot, with Elan as an active player instead of coming across as contrived/deus ex machina.

Final note on our heroes. At first, I was going to give them (both Fredrick and Kathryn) the Too Stupid To Live label, but honestly? They don't deserve it. They do try their best against the worst circumstances, so I'll just say that they work well together even if they're just Slightly Useless.

Note: I received a digital ARC of this book from the author. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

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