By Kathy Rowland (910 words, five-minute read) Joe Sidek will not be cowed. “Everyone thinks I’m down and depressed. I’m fine!” It’s been a challenging year for the founder of the George Town Festival. In the foreground: the removal and public backlash following the censorship of Moorayameen Mohamad’s photo exhibition, Stripes and Strokes, at this …
By Akanksha Raja (960 words, four-minute read) Prior to stepping into the mystifying world of The Misinterpreted Futures of George Town 2068, I was curious and fascinated by that science-fictioney title, coupled with the exciting premise of a performance with no performers: the technical elements of the show (lights, sound design, video projections) perform in …
“The Misinterpreted Futures of George Town 2068”: Missing Futures Read More »
On the closing weekend of the George Town Festival, ArtsEquator interviewed Singaporean musician Charlie Lim and indie-electronic music duo .gif who were in Penang to perform at China House, along with other Singaporean musical acts including Tabitha Nauser and Yung Raja. The artistes were in George Town as part of Connexions: Passion Made Possible, a …
AExGTF Chats: Charlie Lim and .gif in George Town Read More »
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 …
La Cie Maxmind’s “Isle of Dreams”: The Dark Fantastic Read More »
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 …
AExGTF Chats: Prof Tan Sooi Beng of Ombak Potehi at George Town Festival Read More »
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 …
AExGTF Chats: The Griffith Creative Arts Room at George Town Festival Read More »
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 …
“Kelantan: A Living Heritage”: Tributing the Traditional Read More »
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 …
Three Short Films about Women at SeaShorts 2018, George Town 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 »
