The Necessary Stage, in collaboration with HANCHU-YUEI, one of Tokyo’s most innovative theatre companies, brings us a work that explores the digital remains of life after death in another thought provoking work, “Sanctuary” opening 1 November 2017. Acclaimed playwright Leow Puay Tin interviews the production’s dramaturg, Ken Takiguchi about being the man in the middle. Ken […]
Ken Takiguchi: A Dramaturg’s Sanctuary Read More »
“What criticism shares with art, in other words, is a particular kind of magic: an exchange through which we transfer our attention and our trust to a different imagination, hoping that, by some transfiguration on the page, another person may begin to speak our minds.” “What such reviews do … is to contribute to a
Says You: How to be a critic in an age of opinion [USA] Read More »
Poop! by The Finger Players, Victoria Theatre, 20 – 22 October A man dies. His widow grieves. His mother laughs out loud because to her, death is merely a joke. His 8 year old daughter wonders, “When is life worth living; when is death worth celebrating?” Ticketing and more information. A Design Film Festival 2017
16 – 22 October 2017: Singapore Read More »
The “SUNSHOWER: Contemporary Art from Southeast Asia 1980s to Now” exhibition in Tokyo has collected so much material that it could be split into two substantial halves, one at the Mori Art Museum and the other at The National Art Center, Tokyo. It is a showcase of a profusion of artworks through a sampling of important
“SUNSHOWER”: Encounters with Contemporary Art from Southeast Asia Read More »
Top Picks of Indonesia art events in Jakarta and Yogyakarta from 16 – 22 October 2017 JAKARTA Dancing Queen, 17 October 2017, 8 PM, Basement Theatre Jakarta, Taman Ismail Marzuki, Jakarta Djakarta Teater Platform returns with Bandar Teater production of Dancing Queen/Dansinkwin. This performance shows how text occupies space or activates space, which
16 – 22 October 2017: Indonesia Read More »
Duration: 18 mins The first Asian Youth Theatre Festival (AYTF), organised by Singapore’s Buds Youth Theatre, will take place at *SCAPE from 13 – 15 October. Featuring theatre practitioners and youth theatre groups from 10 Asian countries, it’s a chockablock weekend of original plays, workshops, street performances, and a flea market. We caught up with
Podcast 29: Asian Youth Theatre Festival 2017 Read More »
In 2015 Singapore celebrated ‘SG50’, the city-state’s golden jubilee, marking 50 years of independence as a sovereign nation. Commissioned by the Singapore International Festival of Arts to respond to that year’s theme of ‘Post-Empires’, W!ld Rice created Hotel, a sprawling, four-and-a-half-hour-long play in two parts intended to subvert the nationalistic triumphalism of the jubilee’s official
W!ld Rice’s “Hotel” at Adelaide’s OzAsia Festival Read More »
Between 21 April to 3 July this year, Haus der Kulturen der Welt (HKW) in Berlin hosted Misfits: Pages from a Loose-Leaf Modernity, curated by David Teh. The exhibition featured three artists from Southeast Asia: Fillipino filmmaker Rox Lee, who sowed the seeds of a nascent experimental scene; Thai artist and poet Tang Chang, known
Top Picks of Indonesia art events in Jakarta, and Padang Panjang from 9 – 15 October 2017 JAKARTA Xalisco, A Place, 14 – 15 October 2017, 7:30 PM, Salihara Theatre, Jakarta Xalisco, A Place began as a story that is dedicated to Latin American writers. “A man arrived in Mexico City on his journey
9 – 15 October 2017: Indonesia Read More »
Duration: 33 mins Hot on the heels of our first podcast on Singapore International Festival of Arts 2017, which focused on the festival’s Singaporean commissions, the second part of our podcast recap zooms in on the international productions, which all saw their Asia-Pacific premieres at the festival. In studio, Chan Sze-Wei, Shawn Chua, Felipe Cervera, Naeem
Podcast 28: SIFA 2017 Part 2; International Shows Read More »
Who are the next generation of dancers in Singapore? What do they aspire to? On stage, defying gravity looks like their natural state of being. Bodies slip from sentryesque sequence, to uncoagulated fluidity within a beat’s count, before turning back on themselves. Crispian Chan goes behind the scenes to capture the labour that bears these
Photo Essay: “The Next Generation” Dancers of NAFA and LASALLE Read More »
By Marcus Yee (872 words, 8-minute read) A time capsule of a film on time capsules, Tan Pin Pin’s latest film In Time To Come is underpinned by a confounding observation: Singapore’s national obsession with time capsules, despite the nation-state’s short post-independence history. The otherwise plotless film follows three time capsules, the sealing of two time capsules
Tan Pin Pin’s “In Time To Come”: On the Edge of a Snow-Globe Starburst Read More »
By Elaine Chiew (1350 words, 10-minute read) The stitching together of alternative histor(ies) within artistic exploration as a kind of “false radical chic”, to borrow Singaporean artist Ho Tzu Nyen’s term[1], can cloud the tougher question of where lies the artist’s burden of truth when playing with history. The four artists showcased in Ghosts and
“Ghosts and Spectres”: The Burden of History and Artistic Narration Read More »
The Asia Europe Foundation’s Culture360 and ArtsEquator present a series of 5 co-commissioned articles that look at arts groups, artists and performances in Southeast Asia that are comprised of or address artists with disabilities. In this article, Stephanie Burridge talks with performance-maker Ramesh Meyyappan about inclusivity, the need for hearing and hearing-impaired artists to share the same
“Off Kilter”: Interview with Ramesh Meyyappan by Stephanie Burridge Read More »
“Bangkok Art and Culture Centre’s (BACC) fourth floor studio, the main venue for its ongoing sixth annual Performative Art Festival (PAF#6), is once again opening doors and lending its support not only to professional dance and theatre groups but also less seasoned performers. Last month, a mere five days after Anatta Theatre Group’s “Love Astray”
Unravelling social and political threads [Thailand] Read More »
9th Love & Pride Film Festival by Golden Village and Singapore Film Society, various GV cinemas, 27 Sept – 8 Oct Curated by the Singapore Film Society (SFS), Golden Village’s 12-day Love & Pride Film Festival returns for its 9th year, featuring a bold lineup of six internationally acclaimed
2 – 8 October: Singapore Read More »
Top Picks of Indonesia art events in Jakarta and Padang Panjang from 2 – 8 October 2017 JAKARTA Sayang, Sayangilah Jiwamu, 6-8 October 2017, Kineforum, Taman Ismail Marzuki, Jakarta In this 21st century, it is still rather difficult to discuss mental disturbances openly despite the fatal effect of such disturbance. In an effort
2 – 8 October 2017: Indonesia Read More »
Duration: 39 mins Elaine Chiew, Naeem Kapadia, Matt Lyon and Kathy Rowland dissect some of the Singapore-led offerings at the Singapore International Festival of Arts 2017: Becoming Graphic, an original cross-genre commission by Sonny Liew and Edith Podesta, Art Studio by Nine Years Theatre, adapated from the novel by Yeng Pway Ngon, Dragonflies by Pangdemonium, written by resident
Podcast 27: SIFA 2017 Part 1; Singapore Commissions Read More »
“The final line is spoken, the audience applauds, the actors take their bows. But at an increasing number of theaters, the night isn’t over. Audiences often settle back into their seats. It’s time for the talkback, a chance to discuss the play with the actors, the director or sometimes the playwright. For theaters, the talkback
“After a successful season of performances at the Heritage Celebrations, George Town Festival and Butterworth Fringe Festival in Penang, Ombak Potehi is set to perform in Tokyo from November 2 to 8, 2017. An outreach program of Ombak-Ombak ARTStudio, Ombak Potehi comprises young artists who have learned the art form from the masters and have
Ombak Potehi Performs in Tokyo [Malaysia] Read More »
In what ways does an art institution inhabit the stone mausoleums of two former colonial structures; how can citizens take ownership of those immaculately preserved halls? Susan Sentler trained at the Martha Graham School in New York, danced with the Martha Graham Ensemble and is currently based in Singapore, teaching at LASALLE College of the
Susan Sentler’s “Roof Response” to Danh Vō at National Gallery Singapore Read More »
One of the highlights of da:ns festival this year is a double bill by Eisa Jocson, Macho Dancer and Corponomy. While Corponomy is a new commission by the Esplanade – Theatres on the Bay for da:ns festival 2017, Macho Dancer is a critically acclaimed piece that has travelled extensively to major international festivals. Philippines-based curator and writer, Eva McGovern-Basa, recently managed and edited an interview
Eisa Jocson: “Macho Dancer” and “Corponomy” Read More »
Top Picks of Indonesia art events in Jakarta, Yogyakarta, and Bali from 25 Sep – 1 Oct 2017 JAKARTA Memoria: Five Indonesians Shorts Films, 26 September 2017, 7 PM, Goethehaus, Jakarta This week’s Goethe Art Films presents 5 Indonesian Short Films. They are Pulang ke Indonesia, Sendiri Diana Sendiri, Memoria, Lemantun, Prenjak. All five
25 September – 1 October 2017: Indonesia Read More »
The Human Voice at Loft 29 on the closing weekend of George Town Festival marks the first collaboration between veteran actress Susan Lankester and Joe Sidek, the festival’s founder and driving force, here in his directorial debut. In his stage notes to La voix humaine (The Human Voice), written in 1927 and first performed in
“The Human Voice”: Regrets? A Few. But Then Again, Too Few to Mention Read More »
Langkau sebuah joget sinkretik, joget fizikal, atau malah joget pascamoden (jika boleh kita gelarkan) yang berlingkar tentang sebuah mesin basuh yang bertanya. Ceritanya metafiksyen yang straight-forward dan salah satu poin reviu ini adalah untuk articulate ia tentang apa. Kerana dari judul, sinopsis dan teaser rata-rata ia tidak mendedahkan dengan jelas sebenarnya Langkau ini fasal apa.
“Langkau”: Atau Kisah Mesin Basuh Yang Bertanya Read More »
Duration: 21 min Dr Stephanie Burridge is joined by Sufri Juwahir, co-founder of Soul Signature, to discuss two shows that took place in August: Era Dance Theatre’s Tumasik – Revisiting History and Rewriting Our Story, and Dance Ensemble Singapore‘s Pulsating Resonance《鸣。鼓》. In reflecting on these performances, the conversation evolves into a larger discussion on the
Podcast 26: Traditional Malay and Chinese Dance in Singapore Read More »
By Isaac Lim (496 words, 4 minute read) In the beginning, there was light. Four characters are glimpsed on a bare stage as it gradually and sporadically lights up. They each hold a portable control board that operates the venue’s lights. They are silent. Then their thoughts appear as words projected on two panels, and
“Germinal”: Does consciousness go ‘Poc poc’? Read More »
By Patricia Tobin (500 words, 5-minute read) “Are you interested in the first series of major discoveries, such as the law of elementary mechanics?” a friendly voice asks over an intercom. “The wheel, perhaps?” Halory’s three companions shake their heads and he promptly replies, “No.” In classical physics, we deal with the observable world. In
“Germinal”: Mystery, Science, Theatre Read More »
Top Picks of Indonesia art events in Bandung and Jakarta from 18 – 24 Sep 2017 BANDUNG Prabu Perdana – Artist Collaboration Month, Now – 26 September 2017, SemAta Gallery, Bandung SemAta Gallery is one of the very few art galleries that focus on children. It is a children art center in Bandung that
18 – 24 September 2017: Indonesia Read More »
“Philippine theater has, through three eras of political struggle—Filipino-American, Japanese, anti-Marcos—never hesitated to go to war.” – – Doreen G. Fernandez, Seditious and Subversive: Theater of War From the essay cited above two important ideas emerge: that war breeds theatre and that theatre is a particularly effective weapon of protest. As Fernadez’s survey shows, the
Martial Law Musicals: Theatre of a New War? [Philippines] Read More »
