10 Things You Didn’t Know About Dikir Barat
Most Singaporeans recognise traditional artforms such as Bharatanatyam, wayang kulit and wushu. However, there are many other interesting forms which may not be as known, especially to the younger generation. 10 Things is a series of three short…
Bird is the word: Peepbird by The Finger Players
By Nabilah Said (950 words, 4-minute read) If hope is a thing with feathers, then Peepbird, a 60-minute-long non-verbal show, would be it. This offering by The Finger Players was my first live theatre show since COVID – the one…
From Here On: Going to the theatre in the time of COVID
By Jocelyn Chng (1,550 words, 5-minute read) Attending From Here On, my first live performance since COVID hit, evoked a very strange mix of emotions in me. Unfortunately, before getting anywhere near the performance itself, the experience of attempting to…
Scene and Heard: Ritirong Jiwakanon, Theatre Designer
(1,350 words, 5-minute read) My name is Ritirong Jiwakanon. And my nickname – all Thai people have nicknames – is Hong. I live in Bangkok. I teach in Chulalongkorn University, in the Faculty of Arts. Actually originally I’m from Yala…
Podcast 81: King and The Book of Mothers
In this month’s theatre podcast, Nabilah Said, Matthew Lyon and Naeem Kapadia discuss two plays from the Festival of Women: N.O.W. 2020: King, written and performed by Jo Tan and directed by Jasmine Ng; and The Book of Mothers, written…
ArtsEquator, Deadline Now
by Kathy Rowland ArtsEquator sometimes feels like a mythical creature. Looking back over the past 4 years, it takes the shape of a unicorn, a joyful improbability. With Covid-19, it can weigh like an albatross, cash flow statements instead of…
Burning Questions: Can Critics Criticise during a Pandemic?
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…
Emotional asymptotes in Checkpoint Theatre’s The Heart Comes to Mind
By Ke Weiliang (2,500 words, 8-minute read) Sunday, 7 June 2020 circa 1230 hrs I press the ‘play’ button on The Heart Comes to Mind for the first time. As per director Claire Wong’s suggestion, I grab my favourite…
Coronalogues, pandemic spectatorship (and the critic)
By Nabilah Said and Corrie Tan (5,950 words, 20-minute read) Spoiler Alert: This text contains spoilers for The Coronologues: Silver Linings by The Singapore Repertory Theatre and Long Distance Affair by Juggerknot Theatre Company and PopUP Theatrics. To view this…
Seasons of Love: Southeast Asia-style
It started out as a “small project” amongst friends. Peter Ong, a musical theatre performer based in Malaysia, wanted to do a recording of the song Seasons of Love, from the musical Rent by Jonathan Larson, to create a message of…
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…
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…
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…
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…
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…
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…
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…
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…
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…
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…
Metal: An Improbable Alchemy of Dance And Heavy Metal
The following review is made possible through a Critical Residency programme supported by By Carolyn Oei (762 words, 5-minute read) I am not a fan of heavy metal music – or heavy metal anything – so I took my seat…