I Hear Shih Hsin Singing

I Hear Shih Hsin singing,
Raising her voices so sugary and so sound,
Like the wind in the woods,
Blowing in, blowing out.
I hear Shih Hsin singing her song.
I hear Shih Hsin’s song.

The zealous amateur director
Sits in her director’s chair,
And sings to her microphone
About acting and dancing, about moving and posing,
And ladies with cold beaten hearts.

The sensible amateur playwrights
Sing along with all the amateur actors,
About sins, about crimes, about cheating and about trust--
All that Jazz

The vigorous choreographers
Sing their songs of coaching,
Amateur yet professional,
Enlivening the whole stage.

The amateur actors and dancers
Sing their songs in high glee.
In unison or one by one,
They laugh and they cry,
They shout and they stomp,
So the audience wants to sing along.

The off-stage crew sings the song of collaboration.
The producer, the art director, the stage manager,
Scenery designers, lighting designers, sound designers,
Costume designers, make-up designers,
Subtitle writers, fundraisers,
And many other people who work without a title…
All sing a song of cooperation.


For four years I have been with these lovely students, most in the
class and some on campus. In class, I enjoyed their creativity in
performances, oral reports and journal writing. After class, some of
us spent countless idle hours together: forming study groups,
reading novels, and discussing poems. Most of the time, we simply
chatted outside the English Corner or in my office. We exchanged
ideas and shared laughter. One day, Cynthia and Mona came to talk to
me about the graduation play, and I knew right at that time that no
matter what play they chose, they were going to make it. They were
courageous enough to choose Chicago, the musical. They really
challenged themselves! In the past year, Cynthia and Mona talked
with me about the performance via email or in person, almost on
daily basis. The whole crew worked so hard to make it happen!

I Hear Shih Hsin singing, Sin, Sing, Swing, Sin, Sing, Swing.