The main inspiration behind the song was Gaga's fear of suffocation as she felt that she seldom found time to just letting it go loose and have fun.
"Fear of suffocation—something that I have or fear is never being able to enjoy myself, 'Cause I love my work so much, I find it really hard to go out and have a good time. "I don't go to nightclubs, You don't see pictures of me falling out of a club drunk. I don't go—and that's because I usually go and then, you know, a whiskey and a half into it, I got to get back to work."
The phone addressed in the lyrics of the song is not a physical phone, but a person in her head telling her to keep working harder and harder.
Gaga originally wrote "Telephone", with Rodney Jerkins, for Britney Spears. however, Spears' label rejected it and Gaga recorded the song as a collaboration with Beyonce Knowles for The Fame Monster.
They took their vows in front of their newly opened pub at Pasir Ris Town Park.
Kept it simple and meaningful, like how the Westerners would plan their weddings..
Pris was soooo pretty that day.
Some random candid shots of the innocently cute little ones..
Kids their age probably do not know the meaning of weddings, but they sure do know that the day was a happy one =)
Pictures aplenty..
Dillon missing..
Pris and her family..
Grandma and the couple
With my family
Dom's family
The Pond Star at the Pasir Ris Town Park
Opened by four partners:
The newly-wedded pair and another of my cousin plus the pub's chef, who also happened to be Don's friend.
They served The Pond Star's specials after the solemnisation.
Specialising in pizzas and finger food, and of course cheap beer.
So we had prawns from the nearby fishing pond, pizzas, meatballs with cheddar cheese, nuggets, fishballs wrapped in bacon as well as turkey ham with potato salad.
And the youngsters seemed to enjoy downing the free drinks..=x
San Miguel beer, Hoegaarden beer, Budweiser..
Shall end the post with a video of the newly-wed couple doing a casual rumba piece..
Arun is really a comical guy..
I believe this short stint has a great significance to them..
Because dance was in fact their passion that got them together.
A nice re-emphasis of how Caucasian-like the wedding was =D
If you think her first album was so damn good that we wonder what other eccentric ideas, styles and music she can possibly come out with for her next album..
Once upon a time there lived a girl called Cinderella..
*****
Since JC days,
I have always loved watching live drama performances.
Caught a few back then, mostly at the nostalgic Raffles Hotel Jubilee Hall.
Ice skating feats have never failed to mesmerize us.
The way they lifted themselves mid air and landed gracefully on hard ice..
Backward flips and the awe to which they did those speeding twirls on one spot.
Cinderella was my favourite fairy tale of all time..
Though I've read many versions before, the simple gist of the story has never failed to touch me.
I said that not because we were given a pair of free tickets to catch Disney's Cinderella on Ice..
It was pure coincidence that we were given a chance to catch this extremely fantastic combination.
A live drama with world class ice skating talents,
Revolving around the story of Cinderella,
All staged in Esplanade..
The durian's theatre..
Our very first trip.
This free pair of tix was indeed a bonus =)
*****
The interior of the Theatres on the Bay far exceeded our expectations.
All the sceptical doubts of the Singapore's first attempt to connect to the world of arts vanished the minute we stepped into the theatre.
The splendor was evident.
Needless to say,
The performance was a superlative one.
This rendition of Cinderella belonged to another version.
Cinderella was a humble ballet dancer for Swan Lake on Ice
Who managed to wow the crowd with her beautiful dance moves..
The best of all,
The lovable and kind hearted her impressed the Duke's son who caught her performance.
The prince fell for her and the two of them expressed their feelings for each other by dancing in the rain.
There was real rain falling onto the ice stage.
Then she was given an invitation to the ball organised by the prince but only to find her invitation slip stolen as she fell prey to the plot set up by her evil stepmother and step sisters.
But with help from her gypsy fairy godmother,
She eventually managed to attend the ball..
*****
The show started with a simple portrayal of Cinderella..
Who lost her mother at a young age and turned to her father for comfort and solace.
All exhibited behind a thin piece of veil for that dreamy effect.
Then the thin veil was risen up..
And the father whipped Cinderella off her feet to begin the high speed skating around the small stage..
Such synchronised graceful movements to the soft classical music.
The stage darkened..
When the lights were back up,
The stage props were very neatly swapped to signify the change of scenes.
The ease with which the settings transformed..
Very impressively done.
The stage effects were lavishly presented.
Not a sign of budget constraint.
The high energy act put up by excellent ice skaters who skated with such grace,
Who never missed a step, who never once faltered won us over right at the beginning.
The ravishing outfits boosted the outstanding skaters..
Victorian mix with a tinge elegance..
Even the supporting roles had unquestionably handsome outfits.
The whole production was very well choreographed.
As the show slowly proceeded.. I wondered..
How on earth are they going to showcase that the step mother and sisters are evil?
The evil step mother and sisters skated with hard vigor..
Skilfully to an evident lack of gentle poise..
Dressed in creaseless pants and smart suits,
Their steps were rougher as compared to Cinderella.
Throughout the show
They had on prominently sullen but wholesome facial expressions to top up their indignation.
Cinderella
We have to admit was one of the best ice skaters around..
It seemed as if she belonged to the ice stage.
Never did once the heartfelt smile left her face.
Those portrayal of innocence, finesse, forbearance..
Her smooth and refined movements were complimented by the elegant flowy chiffon outfits she wore.
Just before the break..
The story evolved to the part where the fairy godmother prepared Cinderella for the ball.
The entertainers on stage began bringing out the props that we could not comprehend much..
But gradually as the props were brought together..
The whole image came up to form
A magnificent carriage..
Lighted up =)
Here's a video clip found on You Tube: The lighted carriage is at 1:42 =)
Absolutely nothing could describe this really awesome performance..
*****
The second half of the show began with the long awaited ball.
A masquerade ball.
The clock on the stage backdrop was actually tuned to real time 11:45.
Much emphasis was put on the time as they dedicated a well choreographed section just to elaborate the importance of the ticking clock.
The supporting roles donned bronze clock jumpsuits.
And the backdrops emitted real fire.
15 minutes to Cinderella's departure.
Entered a listless Prince, eagerly anticipating the arrival of Cinderella.
Ocassionally torn apart by the evil sisters who fought to dance with him.
Then he caught sight of Cinderella.
As usual the lithesome disposition..
She had on a glittery eye mask =)
Both tried hard to get to each other and enjoyed the brief moments together
Till the clock struck 12..
So how for goodness sake are they going to execute the fact that Cinderella lost her shoe?
Before we knew it Cinderella lost her dainty skating shoe with Swarovski crystals..
Yes, she skated with only one leg..
As the lovelorn prince goes around searching for that feet to fit into the skating shoe..
The rest of the girls skated with one leg as well..
Of course each with the help of a male partner.
When he finally found Cinderella..
The couple had their solo performance.
Much to our oblivion,
Cinderella stepped up to the side stage only to return to the middle of the stage attached to an almost invisible harness..
And she was lifted up mid air hovering around in poise and grace.
She came back down and skated a while more only to lift the prince together back to mid air dance.
The show ended with more tasteful displays of the skaters..
The finale saw the skaters teasing the audience with more stunts and even doing quick steps on ice skates..
Every single one of them deserved a standing ovation.
But being the passive crowd we were..
No one stood up.
Though the applause given was long and loud.
Without a single doubt..
The world class performance was definitely worth every single penny.
Sakura in Kyoto and Osaka
Skiing in Hokkaido
Skiing in Switzerland
Midnight sun in Norway
Museums and artifacts in Rome
Manchester in London
Windmills in Holland
Dairy farms in New Zealand
Niagara Falls in Canada
Maui beaches in Hawaii
Beaches in Maldive Islands
