Singapore Archives

Our Cultural Medallion Story: 3 ways to explore this showcase of Singapore artists

A new interactive showcase is shining the spotlight on the 130 artists who have been conferred the Cultural Medallion, Singapore’s highest accolade for the arts. Titled Our Cultural Medallion Story, the exhibition consists of a physical exhibition–with artefacts, write-ups, books and multimedia components—and a companion website, which introduces the public to these renowned artists from […]

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Crispian Chan / Tuckys Photography

Podcast 99: The Mother and ________ Can Change

In this episode of the ArtsEquator theatre podcast, Naeem Kapadia, Matthew Lyon and Nabilah Said discuss two productions: The Mother by Pangdemonium, and ________ Can Change by The Necessary Stage. Stream Podcast 99: ArtsEquator · Podcast 99: The Mother and ________ Can Change Also available on Spotify. Podcast Transcript Nabilah Said (NS): Hello and

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Wild Rice

Podcast 98: Love & Information by Young & Wild

In this episode of the ArtsEquator theatre podcast, Naeem Kapadia, Matthew Lyon and Nabilah Said discuss Love & Information by Young & Wild, which is the youth arm of Singapore theatre company Wild Rice. Stream Podcast 98: ArtsEquator · Podcast 98: Love & Information by Young & Wild Also available on Spotify. Podcast

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WrICE 2021: Writers Ask Writers, Asia Pacific edition

We asked 11 writers and translators of poetry, fiction and non-fiction to participate in an exquisite corpse-like Q&A session, with each person answering a question and then asking one. These writers, who hail from countries in the Asia Pacific such as Sri Lanka, Myanmar, Vietnam, Hong Kong, and Japan, are part of the 2021 cohort of

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JENG JENG JENG: Singapore Theatre Year In Review 2021

JENG JENG JENG…! Year in Review is back! Where did 2021 go? How did the year unravel, and where have we arrived at? In a year where the arts has had to acquiesce to multiple rules, hopeful for a return to normalcy, 2021 had us hurtling through an unknown abyss of multiple emotions best captured

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Open Calls and Opportunities: Nov 2021 (Singapore/SEA)

ArtsEquator Lobang is a list of available open calls, job postings and other opportunities open to people from Singapore and Southeast Asia. “Lobang”, a Malay word for “hole”, is used in Singlish as a shorthand for an opportunity, valuable contact or a tip. Scroll down or click for easier access. Info & Resources | Open

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Rethinking contemporaries: Asian Producers’ Platform Speaker Series

By Wennie Yang (690 words, 2-minute read) There is a quiet and perhaps stubborn optimism that underlies the work of a producer. Perhaps one could call it an occupational hazard, always seeking new ways to do things. This spirit seemed to drive the most recent Asian Producers’ Platform (APP) open forum, which took place from

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Mah Jun Yi and Low Pey Sien

ANCER Lab 03 Manila: How arts managers are surviving COVID-19

By Wennie Yang (1,200 words, 4-minute read) Pandemic restrictions have put arts and cultural workers and institutions in a bind: choosing between sustaining their missions at times of a global pandemic or ceasing operations altogether. How have Southeast Asian arts managers survived? That was the question at the heart of the third ANCER Lab, formed

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ARTSEQUATOR TURNS 5: Here’s 5 articles, podcasts and videos to check out.

ArtsEquator is five this month! To celebrate, we’ve trawled through our archives to select some of our past content that we think is worth a revisit! Also look out for more features in the next few weeks! 5 articles you should check out: To Biennale or Not to Biennale by Sunitha Janamohanan. Part 2 here.

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SEE WHAT SEE: BOYS’ LOVE (BL) DRAMAS

By Lainie Yeoh I grew up in an era where queer films were rare exceptions and it was your holy gay-af duty to watch all the ones you could access. Yes, even if they’re mostly about white people processing their feelings; or painfully slow art films by gay Asian men thinly disguising their personal journeys;

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Kristina Flour via Unsplash

Quiz: What’s Your Guilty Pleasure?

It’s 2021 – and you’re constantly being told to be your best self! There’s that pile of books waiting to be read, countless browser tabs open with must-read articles, and a list of podcasts that are supposed to make you smarter. But at the end of a long day, all you find yourself reaching for

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httpswww.singaporewritersfestival.comwriter-presenter-detailssunisa-manning

Illustrations by Divyalakshmi and Natalie Christian Tan

Shock Horror: The Southeast Asian monsters we love

ArtsEquator chats with five writers about their favourite horror characters and monsters from Southeast Asian lore and mythology. We then asked two Singapore artists, Natalie Christian Tan and Divyalakshmi, to respond with a custom illustration based on the replies. Singapore Writers Festival 2021 runs from 5 to 14 November 2021 with the theme “Guilty Pleasures”

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Podcast 97: Writer Wayne Rée talks about gore and slasher fiction

In the second of a two-part episode on the Singapore Writers Festival 2021, Nabilah Said chats with horror writer Wayne Rée about his love of gore and slasher fiction, the supernatural in Southeast Asia, and his opinions on Nickelback. Wayne is part of SWF panel Kill Your Darlings (and Everyone Else) on 14 Nov 2021,

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Podcast 96: Writer Grace Chia talks about crime and The Arches of Gerrard Street

In the first of a two-part episode on the Singapore Writers Festival 2021, Nabilah Said chats with author Grace Chia about her book The Arches of Gerrard Street, and her thoughts on writing crime while exploring themes surrounding the experiences of minorities and the Chinese diaspora in London, and exoticism. Grace is part of SWF

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So You Wanna Be An Independent Art Curator in Singapore?

By Syed Muhammad Hafiz (1,000 words, 3-minute read) For the uninitiated, art curators are a mysterious bunch. Even scary, sometimes. Usually associated with big, stuffy museums, they speak a particular language that only they would recognise, and write essays that would require you to have a dictionary on hand. Fortunately, most of those stereotypes are

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Courtesy of Zinkie Aw and Drama Box

Reframing The Mental Health Discourse ‘With Time’

For his directorial and playwriting debut, Drama Box’s resident artist, Chng Yi Kai, wants to reframe the discourse around mental health. This might seem ambitious for a young artist of 29, but this issue has been percolating in his mind since he was in university a couple of years ago. “I was going through some

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Open Calls and Opportunities: Oct 2021 (Singapore/SEA)

Updated 22 Oct ArtsEquator Lobang is a list of available open calls, job postings and other opportunities open to people from Singapore and Southeast Asia. “Lobang”, a Malay word for “hole”, is used in Singlish as a shorthand for an opportunity, valuable contact or a tip. Scroll down or click for easier access. Info &

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Keluarga Besar En. Karim: Pressing play on family drama

By Faezah Zulkifli (921 words, 3-minute read) The setting is familiar—every Sunday night, my family gathers in the living room to watch TV. Tonight, we are watching Checkpoint Theatre’s Keluarga Besar En. Karim (The Karims). It was déjà vu; versions of this image of the TV in the living room have greeted my Instagram feed

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Raphael Hugh

Yale-NUS closure: Artistic legacies and loss in (de)liberation

In August, the National University of Singapore (NUS) announced unilaterally that Yale-NUS College would be shut down by 2025, marking what many see as a premature end to the partnership between Yale University and NUS that started in 2011. The months since have seen an outpouring of grief, anger, and resistance against the decision to

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The working processes of artists: Daly Filsuf

“I want to bring all the Asian kinds of music to the world, with our language,” says rapper and music producer Daly Filsuf. In this video, the artist talks about dikir barat as a genre, and how he has fused elements of dikir barat and Malay traditional music into his work with Malay hip hop

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Screen Shot 2021-09-29 at 5.10.12 AM (2)

Kornkarn Rungsawang

Performance Making during a Pandemic: Of Innovation, Form and Embeddedness

By Adriana Nordin Manan (1,000 words, 3-minute read) If arts panel discussions are meant to reflect the times, “Critical Responses to Performance-Making in A Post-Pandemic World” positioned itself well: at this stage of the pandemic, it was less about open-ended contemplation of how the performing arts can retain vitality amidst the prohibitive circumstances, and more

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Cultivating Arts Writing Ecosystems: Criticality and Creativity amidst Necessity

By Adriana Nordin Manan (995 words, 3-minute read) Personal narratives on professional pathways to becoming arts writers in four Asian countries were the departure point for the rich discussion at “Critical Writing Training: Models, Methods and Pitfalls,” a panel session held on 15th September in conjunction with the Asian Art Media Roundtable (AAMR). This was

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The working processes of artists: Sonia Kwek

“Probably your body is the one space you can be the most autonomous still”, says artist and performer Sonia Kwek. In this video, the artist talks about the politics of using the female body in her works, and how this relates to the experiences of marginalised communities. She also shares about her recent work Red

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Open Calls and Opportunities: Sep 2021 (Singapore/SEA)

Updated 30 Sept 2021 ArtsEquator Lobang is a list of available open calls, job postings and other opportunities open to people from Singapore and Southeast Asia. “Lobang”, a Malay word for “hole”, is used in Singlish as a shorthand for an opportunity, valuable contact or a tip. Scroll down or click for easier access. Info

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OPEN CALL: Southeast Asian Arts Censorship Documentation

<Deadline extended to 15 October 2021> ArtsEquator invites applications for the position of Researcher for a regional arts censorship documentation and publication project it is piloting. The programme runs from Jan 2022 – Dec 2023. There are six positions available, one each based in Cambodia, Indonesia, Malaysia, Philippines, Thailand and Vietnam respectively. Women candidates are

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10 Things You Should Know About: Malay Dance

10 Things You Should Know is a series of short animated videos on aspects of Malay culture and heritage, made in partnership with Wisma Geylang Serai. In the first video of this series, we share 10 things you should know about Malay traditional dance, known as tarian. The video features research by Soultari Amin Farid,

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The working processes of artists: Luqman (Flair Brothers)

Singapore hip-hop dancer Luqman from Flair Brothers gives us a lesson in the dance and also the lifestyle, introducing terms that are well known in the scene, and sheds light on how the scene has changed over the years. “If let’s just say there is any oppression, there will always be hip-hop.” This video is

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W.O.W Classics: Neo Wen Xin on Constance Singam

In this video, part of the W.O.W (Women on Women) Classics project, Neo Wen Xin shares about “Where I Was”, a 2013 memoir by Singaporean activist Constance Singam. Constance Singam is known for being a longterm president of AWARE, and for championing the rights of various minority communities in Singapore. Wen Xin was mentored by

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Bernie Ng

Bedside Banter: Cyril & Michael by Bridging the Gap Collective

By Naeem Kapadia (800 words, 2-minute read) Two strangers meet on gay dating app Grindr and share an encounter in a hotel room. Except it’s not just fast, meaningless sex. Budding playwright and theatremaker Theo Chen’s assured two-hander, presented by Bridging the Gap Collective, is a deceptively simple play that slowly draws one into its

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Open Calls & Opportunities: Aug 2021 (Singapore/SEA)

[Updated 9 Sept 2021] ArtsEquator Lobang is a list of available open calls, job postings and other opportunities open to people from Singapore and Southeast Asia. “Lobang”, a Malay word for “hole”, is used in Singlish as a shorthand for an opportunity, valuable contact or a tip. Scroll down or click for easier access. Info

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