An activist uses art as a means of finding new ways of seeing and recalling her mother. Former AWARE president Dana Lam is known more for being an activist than an artist. But take a peek at her biography in the programme booklet, and you’ll notice that she’s performed in more shows that you’d expect. In addition, Dana is also a trained painter, and it … Continue reading Review: Still Life by Checkpoint Theatre
When we first met Dana Lam at a preview of her new play Still Life last year, we were struck by the quiet strength the former AWARE president exuded as she confidently performed a poetic interpretation of scenes from her life. This was helped in part by the countless artworks displayed all around her studio in Goodman Arts Centre, offering us a glimpse into Dana’s life not just … Continue reading Checkpoint Theatre’s Still Life: An Interview with Playwright/Performer Dana Lam
Last year, we caught a preview of a new play from Checkpoint Theatre while it was still in development. Now, that play is finally ready to be staged, as Checkpoint Theatre premieres artist-writer Dana Lam’s Still Life as the very first production of their 2019 season this February. Directed and dramaturged by Checkpoint Theatre co-artistic director Claire Wong, Still Life is Dana Lam’s reflection on her life and art-making, … Continue reading Preview: Still Life by Checkpoint Theatre
Dana Lam is perhaps most famous for being a former President of the Association of Women for Action and Research (AWARE), alongside having published a photobook during the heady GE 2006 days. But did you also know that she’s a trained artist? Once taught by Milenko and Delia Prvacki, Dana has been given the chance of a lifetime: produced by Checkpoint Theatre, Dana will tell the … Continue reading Still Life: Open Studios by Checkpoint Theatre
Pooja Nansi and Jessica Bellamy delve into the history and personal significance of hip hop in a fun and insightful performance. Before we begin, take a moment to think about your favourite hip-hop artist is. Is it Tupac with the deeply emotional and strangely prescient The 7 Day Theory? Could it be pre-Kardashian Kanye West making waves and pushing genre boundaries with 808s & Heartbreak? Or is it … Continue reading Review: Thick Beats for Good Girls by Checkpoint Theatre
Jess Bellamy and Pooja Nansi have just completed a day of rehearsals at Checkpoint Theatre in Goodman Arts Centre. Their space is marked out in colourful shades of tape, while a visualisation board consisting of rappers from Nicki Minaj to Kanye West is stuck on a wall. Joined by director and dramaturg Huzir Sulaiman, we’re here to get down and find out about Checkpoint Theatre’s … Continue reading Thick Beats for Good Girls: An Interview with Creators Pooja Nansi, Jess Bellamy and Huzir Sulaiman
What exactly makes a good girl? Is she religious and knows her prayers by heart? Can she ever let go and take a walk on the wild side and still be good? And above all – can good girls ever call the shots? All these questions and more just might be answered in Checkpoint Theatre’s newest production this April. Directed by Huzir Sulaiman, Checkpoint will be premiering an … Continue reading Preview: Thick Beats for Good Girls by Checkpoint Theatre
Mudwrestling meets body image issues as this production weighs in on the way society has taught women to be perceived and to perform. Since the dawn of time, humans have always been obsessed with their bodies, and perhaps, none more so than the female body. Brought up on a steady diet of women’s magazines with stick thin covergirls, constantly told that ladies shouldn’t be eating … Continue reading M1 Singapore Fringe Festival 2018: The Most Massive Woman Wins by Mitchell Productions Inc. & Chopt Logic Productions (Review)
Stepford wives from 1950s America get a macabre, surreal twist in this bloody good show. There are times we find ourselves wondering when exactly the seeds of feminism were sown. In 1940s America, as men were shipped off to become soldiers during the war, the running of the country was left to women, as wives stepped foot into factories and worked for the first time. … Continue reading M1 Singapore Fringe Festival 2018: The Neighbor’s Grief Is Greener by Emanuella Amichai (Review)
An unusually moving neo-burlesque reflection on film and pop culture’s influence on women. One of the key theories any film studies student learns early on is the concept of the male gaze and visual pleasure, coined by seminal film critic Laura Mulvey. In short, it’s a concept that discusses how Hollywood films are essentially born from an unconscious patriarchal desire to derive pleasure from voyeurism … Continue reading M1 Singapore Fringe Festival 2018: If there’s not dancing at the revolution, I’m not coming by Julia Croft (Review)
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