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locations for staging more experimental theatres. Researchers are experiencing the usage of public
transport themselves to verify the accessibility of public transportation. All researchers are moving to four
performing arts spaces using public transportation: Istana Budaya, Panggung Bandaraya, KLPAC, and DPAC.
Thus, the research is also experiential. Directions for using public transport for the said locations are
essential to map the public transport. Issues from the mapping will be studied. Therefore, location
comparisons will also be part of the research findings to obtain more comprehensive study findings based
on location mapping and further improve the national public transport access development planning for
national arts and heritage.
Shows and Their Audience Members
Each performing arts space has its audience members and suitable performance styles for the
space. The quality of design and size of the space may be suitable for most theatre productions. For
instance, a prominent theatre space with cutting-edge technology may suit a bigger audience and big-
scale productions. In an intimate space, producing a big-scale performance will be challenging. Istana
Budaya is Malaysia’s National Theatre. The status is significant since it represents the Malaysian
performing arts to the world.
Moreover, Istana Budaya has performing arts technology such as moving stages, high-end lighting,
and stage depth, making the stage one of Malaysia's most enormous theatre spaces. Istana Budaya has
two performing arts venues: Panggung Sari and Lambang Sari. Both spaces offer different sizes of shows.
Panggung Sari is a significant and luxurious theatre hall which has 1408 seats with three floors of
seating. The space itself brings an exclusive atmosphere and affects the types of shows in the space. Thus,
Panggung Sari can accommodate classic theatre performances and musicals such as the Phantom of the
Opera and Puteri Gunung Ledang the Musical. The theatre space size is tremendous and extensive, making
the space convenient for musicals that mostly have a bigger production size. Productions in the space also
need to fully utilise the staging technology in Istana Budaya since the rent is expensive compared to the
smaller space. On that account, most productions in Panggung Sari Istana Budaya have different
production types. They are musicals, national laureate plays, children's theatres, high-cost productions
with spectacular scenography, internationally renowned productions, and traditional theatres.
Therefore, the right choice is to perform Puteri Gunung Ledang The Musical and Siti di Alam
Fantasi in Panggung Sari Istana Budaya. Those two productions can fully utilise most of the technologies
in the space. Moving stagings in Panggung Sari have been a critical factor in the success of spectacular
elements in both productions. More lighting equipment benefits the productions, enhancing the Panggung
Sari massive performing space. It will be difficult for both productions if they are performing their works
in a smaller space with limited staging technologies.
Another critical factor to consider is the status of Istana Budaya as a national theatre for Malaysia.
Productions in Istana Budaya must produce shows with high-quality works and promote local content. For
this reason, traditional theatres are some productions that work very well with the space. Moreover, there
are possibilities for Istana Budaya to get more audience members with bigger productions since more
people will be involved in the marketing process. Some dramas were written by national laureates, such
International Conference on Local Wisdom of the Malay Archipelago (COLLEGA 2023) Page - 182 -

