Contributors

Kathy Rowland is the Managing Editor of ArtsEquator.com, a registered charity that she co-founded with Jenny Daneels in 2016. The site is dedicated to supporting and promoting arts criticism with a regional perspective in Southeast Asia. Kathy has worked in the arts for over 25 years, working in the areas of critical writing and arts advocacy, with a special interest in media platforms for the arts. She is the Project Lead for ArtsEquator’s Southeast Asian Arts and Culture Censorship Documentation Project, launched in 2021. She has written extensively on censorship of arts and culture in Malaysia. She was a member of the International Programme Advisory Committee of the 8th World Summit on Arts and Culture, 2019.

10 great modern Southeast Asian films

A rough guide to contemporary cinema from Thailand, Vietnam, the Philippines and other parts of Southeast Asia. Southeast Asia is an expansive region that produces diverse cinema, much of which now reaches the international festival circuit. Yet only a relatively limited number of titles receive overseas commercial release, usually based on the director’s prestige or

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Staircase artwork by Singaporean Priyageetha Dia depicts a reverse-Midas scenario

“And leaving gold in a public area–of course it would be bait. Not so much for thieves, but the ensuing discourse, already overdetermined, of whether it was authorised, legal, permissible, safe. MP’s and Town Council officials weighing in, sandpapering the gold with their pronouncements more than the slipper-soles of the residents who actually use the

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Lavish production of Rizal’s ‘Noli Me Tangere – The Opera’ at Cultural Center of the Philippines (via Inquirer.net)

The successful staging in 2014 of the opera adaptation of Rizal’s masterpiece by National Artist for Music Felipe de Leon, with libretto by another National Artist, Guillermo Tolentino, led to Sibal’s decision to mount another, and bigger, production under his own outfit J&S Pro ductions. And this time he is the director, artistic director, stage,

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In Bangkok, the first stage adaptation of MR Kukrit Pramoj’s “Lai Chiwit” (via The Nation)

If theatre-goers feel as if they’ve been going to Sodsai Pantoomkomol Centre for Dramatic Arts almost every month in 2016, it’s partly because Thailand’s first tertiary institution to offer a bachelor’s degree in modern theatre –Chulalongkorn University’s Department of Dramatic Arts – is celebrating its 45th anniversary. And as part of this celebration, the department

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Short film by Malang director wins Australia-Indonesia cinema competition

A film by Indonesian newcomer director Mahesa Desaga, Nunggu Teka (Waiting to Arrive), was named winner of a short film competition in the 2017 Australia-Indonesia Cinema Festival (FSAI) at XXI Senayan City cinema in South Jakarta on Sunday. The 14-minute film follows a mother who lives alone in an old traditional house. While waiting for her only son to come home during

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Two Visionaries of Indonesian Theatre

Teguh Karya and Suyatna Anirun were each inspired by traditional and popular forms of theatre throughout Indonesia, as well as the Western forms of theatre they adapted for the stage. Their style of theatre resided in the realm of intercultural practices that all theatre artists in Indonesia now revere. Tags: Inside Indonesia  Suyatna Anirun  Teguh Karya  Theatre Directing

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The Enduring Power of Southeast Asia’s Traditional Shadow Puppets

For centuries, shadow puppet theater not only captivated audiences across Southeast Asia but also held ritual significance for various local communities. Held outdoors at night, the performances unfolded around the simple setup of a stretched white cloth, lit by an oil lamp, on which the shadows of puppets would dance to orchestral music. Spectators would watch from both

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Performances of Philippine Folk Stories in UP Diliman for the National Arts Month in February

In celebration of the National Arts Month in February 2017, the University of the Philippines Diliman (UPD) through the Office for Initiatives in Culture and the Arts recuperates the kuwentong bayan (folk narratives such as epics, myths, legends, folk tales, etc.) as important repository of ideas, information and even knowledge through a festival billed Salaysayan:

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Beyond the Grand Plié: Ballet Philippines (via Murphy Report)

   The mere mention of “Ballet Philippines” brings one’s thoughts to ballet dancers performing a world-class production at the Cultural Center of the Philippines (CCP). But amidst the awe of such flawless performances, often, one finds himself wondering how much time, discipline, artistry, and passion is entailed to come up with one successful show. Tags:

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Don’t Miss Out!

ArtsEquator is a ground-up initiative. We’re a non-profit organisation, committed to building an arts media that supports the arts ecosystem in Southeast Asia. We are, for now, entirely self-funded. We do however, pay all writers who write original pieces for us (admittedly a small fee for the moment) because we want to build sustainability, but

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