After close to two decades since his last stand-up comedy show, Mark Lee will be returning to tickle everyone’s funny bone on Feb 3 at the Sands Theatre.
Speaking to AsiaOne yesterday (Jan 21), the 57-year-old said he’s happy to be invited by Marina Bay Sands to present the show as part of the integrated resort’s first-ever Chinese language comedy festival.
He shared: “I want to challenge myself. Many of us have seen (local comedian) Kumar and many others presenting their talk shows in English at the Sands Theatre before. I believe I may be the first person to present it in Mandarin. I think it’s a good portfolio for me.”
Mark’s show titled Old Horses Still Have Spring, which is a play on the Chinese idiom ma dao cheng gong and literally means success upon the horse’s arrival, will centre on his unfiltered take on work, money, marriage, ageing and the relentless effort to keep up appearances. Local host-actor Marcus Chin will also be making a special guest appearance.
In 2009, he presented his first show Mark Lee Rally 2009 in celebration of his 20th year in showbiz, where he comically spoke about various topics from government policies and his career, to a “long and torturous odyssey” about he and his wife Catherine Ng’s attempts to conceive a child, The Straits Times reported then. They now have three children.
About his upcoming show, we asked Mark if he has any reservations about sharing his personal life on stage.
He said: “I think I am okay with it because we are all human beings. If my life habits are similar to everyone’s and I’m able to speak about it as a joke and they can relate to it, I think it’s a good thing.
“But of course, I will still reserve 10 per cent of my personal life, can’t reveal everything. As the saying goes, some things should stay within the family. The funny parts can be shared, but not the others.”
He also revealed he and the production team only have 25 days to prepare the scripts, rehearse and make various preparations, and he is definitely feeling some pressure.
“We have been rehearsing for the past two weeks, at least four hours a day, by reading and editing the script, to ensure that we include the funniest parts in it.”
Mark also assured that audiences would be entertained during his show: “I also found it funny during my rehearsals.
“My only pressure now is about my impromptu performance on the actual day. I may extend a 90-minute show to two hours because I would always ad-lib on stage to enhance the show. I hope everyone would enjoy my performance.”
Throughout his nearly four decades in showbiz, Mark has presented many sides of himself including as an actor, host, radio DJ, film producer and director.
Does he feel he has achieved success at this stage of his life?
Mark, who was nominated best actor in Golden Horse 2020 for his role in the movie Number 1, explained humbly: “About acting in films, there are many challenges. Whether I feel successful as a host, I think I am okay and have small accomplishments. I think I have achieved small accomplishments through people who recognised me and I am most happy about it…
“Whether I feel successful as a whole, I think I’m still a long distance away and should still continue to work hard towards it.”
Ticket prices for Old Horses Still Have Spring range from $48 to $128 and are now available at the Marina Bay Sands website.
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