Translation by Eka Wahyuni In one corner of West Java, Indonesia, in the Majalengka Regency, a group of volunteers work hand in hand to distribute Personal Protective Equipment (PPE), groceries, food, and medical equipment to people who have to work outside the home during the Covid-19 pandemic. These volunteers were the Relawan Jabar Baik (West […]
Jatiwangi Art Factory: Cultural work that breaks the mould Read More »
As Singapore gets used to life under Phase 2 of our COVID-19 relaxation measures, players like Singapore Festival of the Arts (SIFA) – or its gentle rebrand SIFA v2.020 – are responding with programmes that are welcoming us back into a semblance of normalcy. SIFA’s film component, Singular Screens, runs from 4 September to 11
Singular Screens – Cinema, the way you want it Read More »
Singapore’s bicentennial year in 2019 sparked great discussion and debate about the legacies of imperialism and colonialism, which continues till today, in step with larger conversations happening globally around decolonisation, indigeneity and civil rights. With the third edition of The Arts House’ LumiNation festival focusing on migration, historian and academic Timothy P. Barnard delves into
Imperial Creatures: Singapore beyond ‘great men’ history Read More »
Lesser known narratives involving migration in Singapore are in the spotlight with The Arts House’ latest edition of LumiNation. A new webisode series focusing on the Baweanese community in Singapore recently premiered with its first episode on August 1. The three-episode series is titled “Orang Phebien”, a term instantly recognisable to Baweanese people as the
Orang Phebien: Telling the story of the Baweanese Read More »
As the work of artists evolve with the restrictions of COVID-19, do critics also need to reassess how they look at performance? Four critics, Loo Zihan, Teo Xiao Ting, Jocelyn Chng and Germaine Cheng discuss their responses as more and more performances go online, and whether it has led to a recalibration or softening of
Burning Questions: Can Critics Criticise during a Pandemic? Read More »
SOURCE X Audible Lands is a film and music programme done in collaboration by The Observatory and filmmaker Eric Lee. The name “SOURCE” comes from an existing programme organised by The Observatory. Commissioned for the Singapore International Festival of the Arts 2020, the initial idea for SOURCE X Audible Lands was to present a short
SOURCE X Audible Lands: Spotlight on Singapore’s migrant musicians Read More »
ArtsEquator’s Southeast Asia Radar features articles and posts about arts and culture in Southeast Asia, drawn from local and regional websites and publications – aggregated content from outside sources, so we are exposed to a multitude of voices in the region. In the weekly Southeast Asia Radar, we publish a round-up of content that have
Weekly Southeast Asia Radar: Artists non-essential?; Cultural festivals make a comeback Read More »
Four artists, Ruby Jayaseelan, Irfan Kasban, Fabio Liberti and Xenres Kirishima Chi Ji Hong, get personal as they talk about mental health issues in relation to works they have been developing for M1 CONTACT Contemporary Dance Festival. Ruby and Irfan talk about what Terbalek (Malay for “upside down”) means to them; Italian choreographer Fabio reveals
M1 CONTACT: Dance artists talk mental health Read More »
ArtsEquator’s Southeast Asia Radar features articles and posts about arts and culture in Southeast Asia, drawn from local and regional websites and publications – aggregated content from outside sources, so we are exposed to a multitude of voices in the region. In the weekly Southeast Asia Radar, we publish a round-up of content that have
Weekly Southeast Asia Radar: Looking back at Uncle Boonmee; Indonesian legends in game Read More »
ArtsEquator’s Southeast Asia Radar features articles and posts about arts and culture in Southeast Asia, drawn from local and regional websites and publications – aggregated content from outside sources, so we are exposed to a multitude of voices in the region. In the weekly Southeast Asia Radar, we publish a round-up of content that have
Weekly Southeast Asia Radar: Malaysian theatre goes digital; Vietnam’s film industry Read More »
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 in February. Taking the form of a lecture-performance, Made in China 2.0 sees Wang performing
Interview with Wang Chong for “Made In China 2.0” Read More »
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 and the people who made them; the crowded hospital ward hums, sometimes a baleful tune when a heart attack becomes a full-body
The Space of/for Memory: ”Last Night I Saw You Smiling” Read More »
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 Law Into Your Own Hands | Hades Fading | À Ố Làng Phố | Dragon
Podcast 79: Asia TOPA (Part 2) Read More »
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 | The Seen and Unseen | Torch the Place | Metal This is the first of a two-part
Podcast 78: Asia TOPA (Part 1) Read More »
By Nabilah Said and Germaine Cheng (1,580 words, 7-minute read) What does it mean to be between worlds? To behold yet not belong? Three works – Café Sarajevo, ATARA and No Place – presented as part of M1 Singapore Fringe Festival 2020 ask these questions, of their audience and of themselves. Café Sarajevo, bluemouth inc.
Between Worlds: Café Sarajevo, ATARA and No Place Read More »
By Nabilah Said ArtsEquator speaks to four women that are part of the local commissions of SIFA 2020 – Siti Khalijah Zainal, Jodi Chan, Ellison Tan and Mia Chee. SITI KHALIJAH ZAINAL, THE YEAR OF NO RETURN Siti Khalijah Zainal is one of the members of the multinational ensemble in The Year of
Behind the scenes with the Women of SIFA Read More »
The challenges of fusing and representing more than one culture while planning and executing a memorable wedding are well-known to us in real life and in fiction. Movies like My Big Fat Greek Wedding (2002), The Birdcage (1996) and Top End Wedding (2019) have explored the themes of love, family, loyalties, tradition and change successfully
Tangled and tackled: Black Ties at Sydney Festival 2020 Read More »
ArtsEquator’s Southeast Asia Radar features articles and posts about arts and culture in Southeast Asia, drawn from local and regional websites and publications – aggregated content from outside sources, so we are exposed to a multitude of voices in the region. In the weekly Southeast Asia Radar, we publish a round-up of content that have
There is a huge difference between watching a great piece of theatre with a beautiful original score, and experiencing a process that gives equal importance to all the creative aspects, including sound. Experiencing the work-in-progress presentation of 宿 (stay) was probably the first time I fully grasped this difference. Presented as part of Sydney Festival
A sound collaboration: 宿 (stay) at Sydney Festival 2020 Read More »
It has been a whirlwind 2 years due to the COVID-19 pandemic. This pesky virus has wreaked havoc on many Singaporeans’ travel plans, including ours. With uncertainty continuing to loom over the travel bubble agreements between the various Southeast Asian countries, we’ve decided to spotlight the local arts scene in 2022. While appreciation for the
8 Must-Visit Arts And Culture Festivals In Singapore In 2022 Read More »
Duration: 21 min In our latest episode of our Fresh Blood podcast, Nabilah Said speaks to Lee Shu Yu and Eugene Koh of Spacebar Theatre about their latest production, The Utama Spaceship, which imagines what happens when Singaporeans are sent into outer space to chope, or ehem, colonise a planet in the nearest star system.
Podcast 73: Spacebar Theatre Read More »
Soultari Amin Farid, Chan Sze-Wei and Germaine Cheng discuss their top picks for dance in 2019, and discuss trends they’ve observed in the scene this year. Duration: 36 minutes Stream Podcast 71: Also available on Spotify. Download Podcast 71 here (right-click and select ‘Save Link As’ on Windows; control+click and select ‘Save Link As’ on Apple)
Podcast 71: ArtsEquator End-of-Year Dance Podcast 2019 Read More »
ArtsEquator’s Southeast Asia Radar features articles and posts about arts and culture in Southeast Asia, drawn from local and regional websites and publications – aggregated content from outside sources, so we are exposed to a multitude of voices in the region. In the weekly Southeast Asia Radar, we publish a round-up of content that have
Weekly Southeast Asia Radar: The animated short ‘Batik Girl’; Manila’s “casserole pot” Read More »
By Akanksha Raja (1,715 words, 7-minute read) The George Town Literary Festival returns for its ninth year next weekend (21 – 24 November) with the theme of forewords/afterwords, a decidedly future-oriented focus pertaining to notions of transitions and new beginnings. Some of the festival highlights include a conversation with 2019 Man Booker International Prize winner
Words in Transit: George Town Literary Festival 2019 Read More »
ArtsEquator’s Southeast Asia Radar features articles and posts about arts and culture in Southeast Asia, drawn from local and regional websites and publications – aggregated content from outside sources, so we are exposed to a multitude of voices in the region. In the weekly Southeast Asia Radar, we publish a round-up of content that have
By Bernice Lee (1,507 words, 7-minute read) Forward Shift, a new platform for works-in-progress within Esplanade’s da:ns festival, begins with much fanfare. Members of the public were treated to three performance experiments featuring artists whose artistic and audience development have been supported steadily at #mydurian. In What She Said, choreographer Raka Maitra and music composer
Progress at work: “Forward Shift” at da:ns festival Read More »
Podcast host Chan Sze-Wei and guest Melissa Quek discuss new works platforms at the M1 CONTACT Contemporary Dance Festival, as well as other new works platforms organised by dance companies and entities in Singapore such as Dance Nucleus, P7:1SMA and Frontier Danceland. The M1 CONTACT Contemporary Dance Festival is organised by THE Dance Company. This
Podcast 66: M1 CONTACT & New Works Platforms (Part 2) Read More »
ArtsEquator’s Southeast Asia Radar features articles and posts about arts and culture in Southeast Asia, drawn from local and regional websites and publications – aggregated content from outside sources, so we are exposed to a multitude of voices in the region. In the weekly Southeast Asia Radar, we publish a round-up of content that have
ArtsEquator’s Southeast Asia Radar features articles and posts about arts and culture in Southeast Asia, drawn from local and regional websites and publications – aggregated content from outside sources, so we are exposed to a multitude of voices in the region. In the weekly Southeast Asia Radar, we publish a round-up of content that have
Contemporary visual art exhibition the Singapore Biennale 2019 will return on 22 November with Every Step In The Right Direction, featuring artworks by over 70 artists from Singapore, Southeast Asia and beyond. In the lead-up to the opening of the sixth edition, Lee Weng Choy speaks with artistic director Patrick Flores, and curators Andrea Fam,
Singapore Biennale 2019: Interview with artistic director and curators Read More »
