Is this thing on? Singapore theatre in the midst of a pandemic
By Nabilah Said (3,200 words, 10-minute read) “Boosted by online efforts, support for Singapore theatre through the roof.” That would be a dream headline, wouldn’t it? Bit lengthy, sure – but it would tell us that the theatrical technological shift…
The working processes of artists: Lim Ai Hooi
Choral conductor Lim Ai Hooi deconstructs the visible and less visible aspects of her work, from how to read notations on a score to the gestures she uses, and how this can reach the hearts of the audience. This video…
From dream to dystopia: The cultural critic in the age of pandemic
By Katrina Stuart Santiago (1,000 words, 6-minute read) February 2020 seems like years ago, and it feels like escapism to even go back to that time. To some extent, it’s almost like a dream, where for over a week, one…
Reading in isolation: Tiffany Tsao’s The Majesties
By Kathy Rowland (760 words, 4-minute read) This review may contain spoilers. Tiffany Tsao’s The Majesties begins with a horrific mass murder. Three hundred guests at the 80th birthday of Irwan Sulinado are poisoned, deadly fungi slipped into the shark’s…
The working processes of artists: Chong Li-Chuan
Sonic artist and composer Chong Li-Chuan shares how he uses sound and music to complement and elevate performances, from theatre to site-specific works, dance and movement. This video is conceptualised and directed by LASALLE students Kim Juwon, Nadiah Syahirah and…
Ong Keng Sen: Pushing the conversation
Theatre stalwart Ong Keng Sen returns to helm Singapore theatre company TheatreWorks, after being away for a decade to complete his PhD in Performance Studies at Tisch School of the Arts in New York. He was also director of the…
Theatre goes online: Call me a purist, I don’t care
By Fasyali Fadzly (2,100 words, 7-minute read) No one would have guessed that the COVID-19 situation would become this bad. The Movement Control Order (MCO) in Malaysia was first ordered on March 18. To date, it has been extended twice,…
Reflections on Art, Angin, Sickness and The Soul of Malaysia
By Jo Kukathas (5,500 words, 15-minute read) The news that Germany rolled out a 50 billion bail-out for the arts during the Coronavirus pandemic made headlines worldwide the week it was announced. The aid package was for individuals as well…
The working processes of artists: Sabrina Poon
Singaporean filmmaker Sabrina Poon, better known as Spoon, talks about her work and the value of storytelling by breaking down three of her short films – Sylvia, Hello Uncle and Pa. This video is conceptualised and directed by LASALLE students…
Let’s get digital: 12 online efforts by Southeast Asian artists and creatives
1. Sharul Channa’s Am I Old? Virtual Edition What: A comedy monologue by Singaporean comedian Sharul Channa, Am I Old? will introduce you to 68-year-old retired teacher, Savitri. Listen to her hilarious stories of love, life and ageing. This…
Scene and Heard: Pat Gui, Stage Manager
(1,400 words, 5-minute read) I’m Pat Gui and I’ve been in the art industry for 29 years. I feel very old. On my business card, it says that I’m a director, because I’m the company director of my own company….
Letter from Esplanade: A reflection on the arts, lessons from SARS, and COVID-19
By Yvonne Tham (1,700 words, 7-minute read) In the performing arts, timing is everything. In music, rhythm is a dance among units of time. While dance is the body in time and space. And we all know in theatre, timing…
Reading in isolation: ‘Others’ is Not a Race and Interpreter of Winds
By Kathy Rowland (913 words, 4-minute read) Last November, when there was nary a thought for social distancing, and Corona conjured up visions of lime wedges and grimy bars, I reread Rex Shelley’s 1991 debut novel, The Shrimp People. Shelley…
More than sing sing dance dance: The realities of LASALLE Musical Theatre
(1,800 words, 7-minute read) [Note: At the time of publishing, due to the COVID-19 situation in Singapore, the production has been cancelled. We hope this article serves as an acknowledgement of the great work put in by the graduands.] Izzathy…
Creature comforts: “Creatures of Near Kingdoms”
By Kathy Rowland (650 words, 4-minute read) Zedeck Siew’s Creatures of Near Kingdoms is fashioned as a bestiary, detailing the appearance, characteristics, and habitats of 50 animals and 25 plants. Why “near”? Because like the auto-combusting Ash Swallowtail and the…
Interview with Wang Chong for “Made In China 2.0”
The following review is made possible through a Critical Residency programme supported by By Nabilah Said (1,000 words, 6-minute read) Experimental Chinese theatremaker Wang Chong presented a work-in-progress showing of his newest work, Made in China 2.0, at Asia TOPA…
World Poetry Day: Verse vs. Virus
by ArtsEquator (1,520 words, 5-minute read) It’s World Poetry Day on 21 March. Is there still a place for poetry in the unfamiliar world we find ourselves in? COVID-19 could remake the world in a few short weeks. There is…
The Space of/for Memory: ”Last Night I Saw You Smiling”
By Alfonse Chiu (2,078 words, 7-minute read) Every space tells a story: the empty prison cell speaks of redemptions, of wrongs that were righted, and to the cynical, more earthly, minds, of miscarriages of justice, and the irrevocability of tragedies…
Podcast 79: Asia TOPA (Part 2)
The following review is made possible through a Critical Residency programme supported by In this latest podcast episode, Nabilah Said and Carolyn Oei discuss various productions that were recently presented at Melbourne’s Asia TOPA: Are You Ready To Take The…
Podcast 78: Asia TOPA (Part 1)
The following review is made possible through a Critical Residency programme supported by In this latest podcast episode, Nabilah Said and Carolyn Oei discuss various productions that were recently presented at Melbourne’s Asia TOPA: Black Ties | HuRu-hARa | Chinese Square Dancers…
Eko Supriyanto’s “IBUIBU BELU”: Uncomfortable Questions
By Sharmilla Ganesan (754 words, 4-minute read) As the five women onstage came silently together in a halt, spot lit and wrapped once more in the tenun textile they had first appeared in, there was an initial hush. Ironically, for…
“No. 60”: Klunchun unmasks the Khon
By Katrina Stuart Santiago (936 words, 6-minute read) The past as a point of reference for contemporary cultural work is not new, and neither is the need to rethink it, reconsider it, or respond to it. Anyone who works in…
Thanapol Virulhakul’s “The Retreat”: Dance, Uncontained
By Amitha Amranand (1,350 words, 5-minute read) Thai dancer-choreographer Thanapol Virulhakul is certainly not the first artist to wonder whether art could become more of a part of our daily life nor to attempt through his art to make it…
International Women’s Day: Inspiring Women
By ArtsEquator For International Women’s Day, ArtsEquator asked 11 women arts leaders in SEA to tell us about a woman who has inspired, supported or mentored them on their arts journey. Their stories recall mothers, bosses, Hollywood directors and an…
Draconic Self-Portrait: An intimate conversation with Margaret Leng Tan on Dragon Ladies Don’t Weep
By Shahril Salleh (1,357 words, 4-minute read) Doyen. Icon. Self-professed Dragon Lady. These are some of the facets of Margaret Leng Tan, Singapore’s Cultural Medallion award recipient in 2015. Margaret is a treasured Singaporean musician and performance artist who is…
From the Macarena to Chicago: A LASALLE performer’s journey
By Ke Weiliang (1,719 words, 7-minute read) Monday, 20 January 2020. It is 8.45am and I am seated inside one of the dance studios at LASALLE College of the Arts. Over the course of the next 75 minutes, I watch…
À Ố Làng Phố: Less trick, more treat in Vietnamese bamboo circus
The following review is made possible through a Critical Residency programme supported by By Nabilah Said (730 words, 6-minute read) You go into a circus performance with certain expectations. You want the big shebang, the SPECTACULAR SPECTACULAR. The physical feats…
Dragon Ladies Don’t Weep: Brilliance Is Margaret Leng Tan
The following review is made possible through a Critical Residency programme supported by By Carolyn Oei (638 words, 5-minute read) Note: This review may contain some minor spoilers for Dragon Ladies Don’t Weep by Margaret Leng Tan. ONE: “Music;…
Hades Fading: Modern-day Ancients
The following review is made possible through a Critical Residency programme supported by By Nabilah Said (708 words, 5-minute read) In Hades Fading, Eurydice has a memory problem. She can’t remember where she comes from. The books all tell her…
Are You Ready To Take The Law Into Your Own Hands: Tongue Scrapes Against Cheek
The following review is made possible through a Critical Residency programme supported by By Nabilah Said (670 words, 5-minute read) I watched Are You Ready To Take The Law Into Your Own Hands by Sipat Lawin and Friends on 26…