Full Steam Ahead: An Interview with Dim Sum Dollies Pam Oei and Jo Tan, and Music Director Elaine Chan

With the short run most productions have and few restagings, the longevity of any theatre show or concept in Singapore is never guaranteed. Which is why for local company Dream Academy, the continued success of their signature characters and IPs is a net positive all around. Amidst these, cabaret trio the Dim Sum Dollies remain a perennial favourite, having first making their claim to fame … Continue reading Full Steam Ahead: An Interview with Dim Sum Dollies Pam Oei and Jo Tan, and Music Director Elaine Chan

Preview: The LKY Musical (2022) by Aiwei and Singapore Repertory Theatre

In its original run in 2015, Singapore Repertory Theatre’s (SRT) then-all new musical The LKY Musical premiered in the same year our late founding father passed, acting as a moving tribute and testament to the work and nation-building Lee Kuan Yew contributed in taking Singapore from third world to first, playing to over 50,000 audience members in its original run. This September, ‘the most successful … Continue reading Preview: The LKY Musical (2022) by Aiwei and Singapore Repertory Theatre

★★★☆☆ Review: The Nest by Rainshadow Studios

It’s morality versus materialism in this debut production by Singapore’s first eco-theatre company. Raising a child is hard – not only does it incur tremendous financial strain, but children are also incredibly vulnerable and susceptible to the elements, where one wrong move could result in infant death. With so much stress incurred, it’s no wonder that a child’s birth also has immense effects on a … Continue reading ★★★☆☆ Review: The Nest by Rainshadow Studios

Esplanade’s The Studios 2022: An Interview with Teater Ekamatra’s Mohd Fared Jainal and Zulfadli Rashid on ‘Berak’

When Chong Tze Chien’s Poop was first staged back in 2010, the new play was a tour de force that firmly cemented The Finger Players (TFP) as a company to watch, with a heartbreaking story about love and loss, told through evocative music, effective lighting, and of course, whimsical puppetry. 12 years on and several restagings later, the contemporary classic is getting a brand new … Continue reading Esplanade’s The Studios 2022: An Interview with Teater Ekamatra’s Mohd Fared Jainal and Zulfadli Rashid on ‘Berak’

Review: Fat Kids Are Harder to Kidnap 2022 by How Drama

More mayhem and madness as How Drama returns with a new edition of their signature show. In a year that’s been characterised with the chaos of a ‘post-COVID world’, with borders opening up and a new normal that feels like we’re going back to the old normal, there’s only one thing to do – make sense of it by making light of it all. And … Continue reading Review: Fat Kids Are Harder to Kidnap 2022 by How Drama

Preview: In New Light – A Season of Commissions by Esplanade – Theatres by the Bay

Esplanade – Theatres on the Bay is reaching a grand milestone of 20 years this October. While the full line-up of celebratory events is still to be revealed, one of the biggest reveals to happen is the long-awaited opening of the brand new Singtel Waterfront Theatre. First announced in 2018 and beginning works in 2019, the Singtel Waterfront Theatre is intended as a way to … Continue reading Preview: In New Light – A Season of Commissions by Esplanade – Theatres by the Bay

Esplanade’s The Studios 2022: An Interview with ‘Acting Mad’ playwright/director Haresh Sharma

Originally staged at The Necessary Stage’s (TNS) Black Box space in 2019 as part of their Orange Production programme, Haresh Sharma’s verbatim play Acting Mad makes a return this August, in a new staging at the Esplanade Theatre Studio, as part of this year’s The Studios programme. Written and directed by Haresh Sharma, Acting Mad was crafted from interviews with 20 actors who have experienced … Continue reading Esplanade’s The Studios 2022: An Interview with ‘Acting Mad’ playwright/director Haresh Sharma

★★★★☆ Review: Tissue Aunty The Musical by Caricapture Theatre

Heartfelt and sincere new work shows the potential of Singaporean musicals. You’ve seen them at MRT exits, you’ve had them approach you while having a meal at the local coffee shop. With the tissue aunty being so ubiquitous in Singapore, she’s something of a national icon, and high time she became the centre of focus in a show. Written, composed, and directed by the late … Continue reading ★★★★☆ Review: Tissue Aunty The Musical by Caricapture Theatre

★★☆☆☆ Review: [title of show] by Sing’theatre

Fringe musical about putting on a fringe musical sets the stage for inaugural Musical Theatre Fringe Festival. When it first premiered in 2004, [title of show] was considered wildly innovative and original for its time, taking the unlikely subject matter of making a musical about making a musical, and turning it into an offbeat and endearing production. Not only was it laugh-out-loud funny with its … Continue reading ★★☆☆☆ Review: [title of show] by Sing’theatre

★★☆☆☆ Review: In Pieces by 7/8 Musical Collective

Puzzling song cycle features catchy numbers but little emotional staying power. It’s no surprise that love is and always has been a central theme across musicals, with characters expressing the nature of love at first sight and chance encounters, or the tragedy of breakups and unrequited pining through song. All of this is captured in Joey Contreras’ 2020 musical In Pieces, which follows eight individuals … Continue reading ★★☆☆☆ Review: In Pieces by 7/8 Musical Collective