Page 31 | ArtsEquator

Book Review: “Excavations, Interrogations, Krishen Jit & Contemporary Malaysian Theatre”

By Felipe Cervera (1600 words, eight-minute read) Excavations, Interrogations, Krishen Jit & Contemporary Malaysian Theatre, edited by Charlene Rajendran, Ken Takiguchi and Carmen Nge, is a long overdue resource that sheds light on important aspects of the cultural, artistic, and political histories of Malaysian contemporary theatre—and, by extension, some medullar elements of Singaporean theatre too. […]

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Weekly Picks: Singapore (10 – 16 September 2018)

Tiger of Malaya by Teater Ekamatra, 12 – 23 Sept, Drama Centre Black Box In 1943, the Japanese film ‘The Tiger of Malaya’ was released. Based on the life story of Tani Yutaka, a Japanese man who lived on the east coast of Malaya, the film portrayed him as a patriotic agent who liberated the

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Veteran Artists Team Up with Younger Generation at ‘Wild Eye’ Exhibition (via The Irrawady)

YANGON — Veteran modernists and younger generations have teamed up to exhibit their works together in Yangon. Twenty-seven modernists are displaying more than 50 works at “Wild Eye” contemporary art exhibition at OK Art Gallery in Aung San Stadium. Their works are either of purely artistic creation or they reflect the contemporary history of their

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“One Two Jaga”: Keberanian Baharu Sinema Malaysia

Penyampaian kritikan sosial atau politik dalam filem-filem Malaysia jarang berlaku melalui suasana yang berani dan mendatangkan ghairah. Malah mengkritik melalui karya secara berdepan seperti sukar untuk dilakukan. Terdapat banyak hal yang menyumbang kepada keadaan ini. Ia antara lain ialah kekangan kebebasan kreatif yang ketara dan banyak aspek perundangan serta peraturan telah menjadi rantai memasung kaki

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Vince Tañada’s postmodernistic theater (via The Manila Times)

Playwright and University of the Philippines faculty member Wilfrido Ma. Guerrero pioneered in bringing theater out into remote provinces in the ’60s through the UP Mobile Theater. This was to afford his grassroots audiences with his kind of theater away from the academe. The master playwright fed himself on his passion for theater until his

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Vietnamese Cultural Week opens in Cambodia (via Nhân Dân)

NDO – The Vietnamese Culture Week opened at Chaktomuk theatre, in Phnom Penh, Cambodia, on September 11. The opening ceremony was attended by the Cambodian Minister of Cults and Religion Him Chhem, Cambodian Minister of Culture and Fine Arts Phoeurng Sackona, Deputy Minister of Culture, Sports and Tourism Le Khanh Hai, Vietnamese Ambassador to Cambodia

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Cambodian FB users rage over dance ownership (via The Nation)

August 31, 2018 18:20 United Nations’ cultural agency Unesco’s Facebook page has hosted a heated debate between Cambodians and Thais over Bangkok’s proposal for the inclusion of “khon” masked dance on the agency’s Intangible Cultural Heritage list. Social network users across the border have claimed the dance was Cambodian, not Thai, in Facebook comments since

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Weekly Picks: Indonesia (10 – 16 September 2018)

Top Picks of Indonesia art events in Yogyakarta, Bandung, Jakarta and Bali from 10 – 16 September 2018 It’s a brand new week, art lovers. Perhaps a dance performance on this Monday night can help to start your week right! Pendhapa Art Space in Yogyakarta presents The Garden of the Sun – a choreographic collaboration

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Weekly Picks: Malaysia (10 – 16 Sept 2018)

BoboKL Presents: Cheryl Tan with Michael Veerapen, at BoboKL, 14–15 Sept, 9:30pm Cheryl Tan is a performer better known across the border in Singapore for her performances in musical theatre productions like Forbidden City and Dick Lee’s Singapopera. See Cheryl perform before she gets pulled back to Singapore again! Admission is RM60++ (RM45++ for diners).

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Podcast 47: TheatreWorks’ “13.13.13” and SRT The Young Company’s ‘The Fall’

Duration : 33 mins Theatreworks’ 13.13.13 and SRT’s The Young Company’s The Fall are the two works discussed in this month’s podcast. Hosts Matt Lyon and Naeem Kapadia are joined by Ann Lee, playwright, LGBTQ activist and PhD-to-be in reflecting on Shen Tan’s ‘13.13.13’, directed by Tan Shou Chen. There were strong feelings all around. Stream

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Podcast 46: M1 Contact Contemporary Dance Festival 2018

Duration: 25 mins Chloe C. Chotrani and Bernice Lee discuss the performances, workshops, technique classes and showcases featured in this year’s M1 Contact Contemporary Dance Festival, which spread out over three months from 15 June – 4 August 2018, as well as the Festival’s role in the landscape of contemporary dance practice and audience reception in Singapore. Chloe

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Johor Arts Festival 2018: Top 8 Picks

The 15th Johor Arts Festival kicked off on 1 September, and runs until 23 September 2018. One of Malaysia’s longest-running festivals, it features a variety of performances, exhibitions, workshops, talks, and activities, ranging between the traditional and contemporary; the loud and the quiet; the lighthearted and hilarious and the moving and poignant. Here are ArtsEquator’s

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Weekly Picks: Indonesia (3 – 9 September 2018)

Top Picks of Indonesia art events in Jakarta, Bandung, and Yogyakarta from 3-9 September 2018 The Warna Warna Exhibition is a collaboration between the singer Andien and the Art Therapy Center Widyatama that is exhibited this week at Dia.Lo.Gue Artspace in Jakarta. Translated as “colors”, Warna Warna invites all of us to see the colors

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Weekly Picks: Malaysia (3 – 9 Sept 2018)

Merdeka State of Mind documentary screenings, at APW, 8 & 9 Sept, 8pm A celebration of freedom of expression in Bangsar, this festival features two nights of timely documentary screenings: the subjects of child brides in Malaysia, and the Orang Asli blockades currently under siege in Kelantan. The director for each film will be

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Thum CC

La Cie Maxmind’s “Isle of Dreams”: The Dark Fantastic

By Akanksha Raja (620 words, four-minute read) 拾念劇集 La Cie Maxmind’s Isle of Dreams (蓬萊) was the headlining event for the George Town Festival’s Taiwan-focused showcase this year. It is a three-hour long work of musical theatre, original in story and in language, loosely adapted from the geography and mythology detailed in the Classic of

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John K

Ombak Potehi’s “Kisah Pulau Pinang: The Penang Story”: A Slice of Malayan History

By Akanksha Raja (620 words, four-minute read) Ombak Potehi is Ombak Ombak Art Studio’s glove puppet theatre group established in 2015, consisting of young people – all under 30 – producing and performing puppet theatre, having been trained by experts from Penang’s Beng Geok Hong Puppet Troupe. To date, they’ve written and produced three works:

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“Pratthana: A Portrait of Possession”: Of Politics and Desire

Everyone is always watching and being watched in Pratthana: A Portrait of Possession, the latest play by Japanese director Toshiki Okada. The play begins with a Narcissus-like image—a young man gazes into the water as he describes a scene of a man being watched by another. Behind the actor, crew members tip an orange plastic

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AExGTF Chats: Prof Tan Sooi Beng of Ombak Potehi at George Town Festival

Potehi puppet theatre is a traditional Hokkien art form brought to Southeast Asia by immigrants from southern China several centuries ago. Despite originally being performed in Hokkien, potehi came to be performed in the different languages of the region, and is practised around Southeast Asia. Ombak Potehi is Ombak-Ombak ARTStudio’s glove puppet theatre group established

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Weekly Picks: Indonesia (27 August – 2 September 2018)

Top Picks of Indonesia art events in Yogyakarta and Jakarta from 27 August 2018 – 2 September 2018 The City of Yogyakarta is full of exciting events this week. On Monday and Tuesday, Hongkong’s Theatre Ash, in collaboration with Studio Tari Banjarmili, presents City of Darkness. Directed by David Glass, City of Darkness is a tragi-comedy

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Weekly Picks: Malaysia (27 Aug – 2 Sept 2018)

Teh Tarik With The Flag, at Balai Seni Negara, 23 July–17 September. 14 Malaysian artists reflect on our relationship and identity with the Jalur Gemilang flag, and create artwork that reference it. Artists include Anurendra Jegadeva, Chong Kim Chiew, Sulaiman Esa, Hasnul Jamal Saidon and Hayati Mokhtar. More info here. Mud & Mashed Hydrangea

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Podcast 45: On Southeast Asian Film with Rithy Panh and Park Sungho

Duration: 35 mins At SeaShorts 2018, which took place from 1 – 5 August 2018 in George Town, Penang, we caught up with Cambodian film director, screenwriter and producer Rithy Panh, and Park Sungho, programmer for S-Express Cambodia (a selection of Cambodian short films at SeaShorts), who’s also a programmer for the Cambodia International Film

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Bernie Ng

“Asian Festivals Exchange” at M1 Contact Contemporary Dance Festival 2018

By Bernice Lee (1300 words, five-minute read) “Asian Festivals Exchange” puts together works selected from two East Asian festivals — Yokohama Dance Collection and Seoul Dance Collection — two works performed by T.H.E. Second Company, and a work-in-progress supported by M1 CONTACT Contemporary Dance Festival and Seoul Performing Arts Festival. It is a very full

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Weekly Picks: Indonesia (20 – 26 August 2018)

Top Picks of Indonesia art events in Bali and Jakarta from 20 – 26 August 2018. Continuing the spirit and celebration of independence, Bentara Budaya, one of Indonesia’s main network of venues and supporters of the arts presents Ode Bulan Agustus, a series of local collegiate choir performances in 4 different cities. The first performance

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Weekly Picks: Malaysia (20 – 26 Aug 2018)

Artist-sharing: Hymen Instinct by Sonia Kwek, at Rumah Attap Library & Collective, 22 Aug, 8pm Performer Sonia Kwek, in conversation with her Malaysian collaborator Lucian, will share documentation and a new script of her solo work Hymen Instinct before the performance goes to the Asia Weekend Theatre Festival in Taiwan. The aim is to have an

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AExGTF Chats: The Griffith Creative Arts Room at George Town Festival

The opening weekend of the George Town Festival 2018 also saw the opening of the Griffith Creative Arts Room at Wisma Yeap Chor Ee, Penang: a room dedicated to presenting the works of creative arts from the students and faculty of Griffith University, Queensland, Australia. This is the first time a university has been invited

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Thum CC

“Kelantan: A Living Heritage”: Tributing the Traditional

By Akanksha Raja (1050 words, four-minute read) George Town Festival is now in its ninth year, and one of the distinctive qualities in every edition is the balance it strikes between presenting international touring works, and Malaysian shows that are rooted in local society and culture. Kelantan – A Living Heritage, the headliner event opening

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Three Short Films about Women at SeaShorts 2018, George Town

The SeaShorts Film Festival ran for its second edition as the official pre-festival to the annual George Town Festival from 1st to 5th August in a radical geographical shift away from the Kuala Lumpur home of its parent organisation, Next New Wave. It showcased more than 120 short films scattered over 22 programmes in two

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CALL FOR APPLICATIONS: ArtsEquator’s Reading Group for Critics

Duration: October 2018 – March 2019 “What distinguishes the good, valuable theatre critic … is that you sense that [they are] writing about a cause – about a theatre in his or her mind. The … writing is possibly in some ways cloaked, but it is a crusade.” – “The Theatre Critic as Thinker”, New

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In George Town, a Proxy War for the Nation

By Kathy Rowland (1165 words, 5-minute read) Coloured ink on paper. Only a society that polices gender and sexuality can turn ordinary photos into weapons of mass gay conversion. Over the past eight iterations, the George Town Festival (GTF) has built an international name for itself as a gem of a festival – a small,

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Vincent

“Between Tiny Cities (រវាងទីក្រុងតូច)”: De-cyphering Conversation

A white circle 10 metres in diameter greets us on entering the flexible performance space in Loft 29. I stand next to B-boy Erak Mith of Tiny Toones (Phnom Penh, Cambodia). He is locked in eye contact with Aaron Lim of D-City Rockers (Darwin, Australia) directly across the circle and I recognise the calm, unflinching

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