★★★★☆ Review: This Song Father Used To Sing (Three Days In May) by Wichaya Artamat

A closer look at ordinary life that carries on in spite of the extraordinary. Thai writer-director Wichaya Artamat claims that his play This Song Father Used To Sing (Three Days In May) is an unpolitical play. But can any play truly be completely devoid of any political attachment? Rounding off the Esplanade’s 2024 season of The Studios, This Song Father Used To Sing (Three Days … Continue reading ★★★★☆ Review: This Song Father Used To Sing (Three Days In May) by Wichaya Artamat

★★★★☆ Review: Hi, Can You Hear Me? by The Necessary Stage

Hell lies somewhere between a bar and a breakout room. Considering that we live in a world ravaged by war, beset by pandemics, and face unprecedented climate change that brings with it the assurance of disaster, it’s not entirely surprising that something eventually breaks inside us from how overwhelming it can all be. But when faced with such existential anxiety – do we end up … Continue reading ★★★★☆ Review: Hi, Can You Hear Me? by The Necessary Stage

Of Disasters and Carrying On: An Interview with co-directors A Yagnya and Alvin Tan on The Necessary Stage’s ‘Hi, Can You Hear Me?’

There are days the COVID-19 pandemic feels like a distant fever dream, a time where everyone was touting the ‘new normal’ when it seemed we would never wake from it. But as suddenly as it came, everything seemed to disappear again when we opened up to the world again, and we entered a new era of chaos. Previously glued to our phones, we saw countries … Continue reading Of Disasters and Carrying On: An Interview with co-directors A Yagnya and Alvin Tan on The Necessary Stage’s ‘Hi, Can You Hear Me?’

Preview: Hi, Can You Hear Me? by The Necessary Stage

A mysterious tiger who runs a bar in limbo. Guan Yin caught in a loop of death and rebirth. A man whose memory fails him while being taken care of by an AI. Post-traumatic boredom, and uncontrollable life within a hotel room. These are just some of the strange characters and phenomena that inhabit The Necessary Stage’s latest play, Hi, Can You Hear Me? Written … Continue reading Preview: Hi, Can You Hear Me? by The Necessary Stage

Review: Love All Around by Abhaya

Stories of love told through bharatanatyam. Love is a mystery, and endlessly fascinating, inspiring countless films, music and stories. Co-created and performed by Krithika Soma, Madhuri Suresh, and Varsha Vishwanath, Abhaya’s Love All Around is a brand new bharatanatyam creation that explores the nature of love, depicting the experiences of unassuming strangers who discover and learn to understand the power of love.  Directed by Ponnamma … Continue reading Review: Love All Around by Abhaya

Bakchormeeboy Awards 2023: The Year That Returned To Normalcy, A Time For Reflection

In 2023, Singapore’s theatre scene felt fully ready to take risks and pull out all the stops for the first true season following the pandemic years. We saw the return of blockbuster musical and stage productions, and plenty of new, experimental works filling in the spaces in between, be it through long-awaited collaborations or younger companies having their work see the light of day, or … Continue reading Bakchormeeboy Awards 2023: The Year That Returned To Normalcy, A Time For Reflection

★★★★★ Review: See You, Anniversary by Nine Years Theatre

Timely, immensely moving play reminding audiences to cherish all we have. What’s in an anniversary? For some people, it’s an arbitrary date in the calendar, used as a good reason to come together and celebrate an occasion with people who matter. For others, it runs much deeper than that, a triumphant acknowledgement of having reached another milestone for every year that goes by, remembrance for … Continue reading ★★★★★ Review: See You, Anniversary by Nine Years Theatre

See You, Anniversary: An Interview with Nelson Chia and Mia Chee on Nine Years Theatre and relationships

In the world of dating, finding your other half is often easier done from within the same industry. And for Nelson Chia and Mia Chee, who’ve known each other for over 20 years now, love came naturally for the two of them over their shared experiences in theatre. “We were actually both in NUS Theatre Studies at the same time, but in different batches, so … Continue reading See You, Anniversary: An Interview with Nelson Chia and Mia Chee on Nine Years Theatre and relationships

Preview: See You, Anniversary《纪念日,再见》by Nine Years Theatre

After glowing five star reviews for original works Electrify My World and Between You and Me, Nine Years Theatre is back for their final show of 2022, with See You, Anniversary playing at the Drama Centre Black Box this September. Told through the duo-lens of narrator and character, See You, Anniversary is a humorous and heart-breaking tale of two entangled souls that will resonate with … Continue reading Preview: See You, Anniversary《纪念日,再见》by Nine Years Theatre

★★★★★ Review: Electrify My World by Nine Years Theatre

Triumphant work that brings a bright spark to a dark time. Narratives about intense rivalries have always been ripe with dramatic potential, gripping audience members with the ways each tries to outdo the other, and the almost electrifying tension between them. But it takes a truly gifted playwright to spin those narratives beyond a feud, to lead audiences to think about the bigger conundrums of … Continue reading ★★★★★ Review: Electrify My World by Nine Years Theatre