Charting A Course Through Bugis Culture In Singapore: Malay CultureFest 2017

The Malay Heritage Centre kicked off its annual Malay CultureFest on 13th October with a bang. Opening the festival was a spectacle of stylised dance, ethnic drums and martial arts tracing the roots of the sub-ethnic community from Bugis – from the myth of their creation, to the people’s departure from their homeland after the Makassar War in the 1600s. Titled Aga Kareba, the performance … Continue reading Charting A Course Through Bugis Culture In Singapore: Malay CultureFest 2017

Preview: da:ns Festival 2017 by Esplanade – Theatres on the Bay

The Esplanade’s 12th da:ns Festival makes a return this month with a whole new programme of some of the very best dance performances from both the international dance scene, and here in Singapore. A grand total of seven ticketed productions will be available to catch this time round, including two festival commissions by Choy Ka Fai and Eisa Jocson. In addition, audiences can also take part in over … Continue reading Preview: da:ns Festival 2017 by Esplanade – Theatres on the Bay

Review: Asian Youth Theatre Festival Day 3

We round off our coverage of the inaugural Asian Youth Theatre Festival with our reviews of Jayaprana & Layonsari by Gigi Art of Dance, Beder Meye (Snake Charmer Girl) by Prachyanat, and a review of last Friday’s forum theatre piece Jangan Kurang Ajar (Don’t Be Rude) by Adib Kosnan & Tumpil Yang Tampil. Read more below: Jayaprana & Layonsari by Gigi Art of Dance (Indonesia) Hailing … Continue reading Review: Asian Youth Theatre Festival Day 3

Artist Spotlight: Performer Iain Gibbons

We’ve seen actor Iain Gibbons in many a fringe show now, from Rounds at the Blue Elephant Theatre to America’s No.1 Detective Agency off at the Drayton Arms Pub, and he’s always delighted us with his quirky sense of humour and ridiculously likable onstage presence. Now, Gibbons is going to get the stage all to himself, as the Gaulier-trained actor stars in his very own devised … Continue reading Artist Spotlight: Performer Iain Gibbons

Taking Over Down Under: Four Singapore Theatre Companies In Australia This September

Singapore’s theatre scene is fast going global. Through the efforts of various companies and organizations over the last few years, we’ve seen a slew of local theatre companies flying overseas to present their shows at multiple festivals, from Edinburgh to Adelaide. In September alone, four local productions have or are slated to perform in Australia, split across Adelaide’s 2017 OzAsia Festival and the 2017 Brisbane … Continue reading Taking Over Down Under: Four Singapore Theatre Companies In Australia This September

Preview: Golden Village’s 9th Love and Pride Festival

Queer film aficionados listen up! The 9th edition of Golden Village’s annual Love & Pride festival is BACK this September and October! Taking on the theme of  ‘Identity’, the festival will run for 12 days from 27th September to 8th October, with most of the films getting two screenings across Golden Village Grand Great World City and Golden Village Suntec City.  Curated by the Singapore … Continue reading Preview: Golden Village’s 9th Love and Pride Festival

SIFA 2017 Finale: Lizard On The Wall

SIFA 2017 drew to a close last Saturday with the premiere of local film director K. Rajagopal’s (A Yellow Bird) latest film: Lizard On The Wall. But the significance of the film was given far greater gravity when you realise what makes the film so special – most of the extras you see in scenes were actually members of the public who participated in the … Continue reading SIFA 2017 Finale: Lizard On The Wall

SIFA 2017: Trojan Women by Ong Keng Sen and the National Theater of Korea (Review)

One thing that can be said about SIFA Festival Director Ong Keng Sen: whenever he attempts to create a new work, he always aims high and goes all the way, resulting at the very least in an unforgettable theatrical spectacle. With Trojan Women, Ong breathes new life into a centuries old Korean art form by applying it to an ancient Greek play. Based off Euripedes’ … Continue reading SIFA 2017: Trojan Women by Ong Keng Sen and the National Theater of Korea (Review)

SIFA 2017: And So You See… Our Honourable Blue Sky And Ever Enduring Sun… Can Only Be Consumed Slice By Slice… By Robyn Orlin (Review)

South African choreographer Robyn Orlin is known in her home country as ‘a permanent irritation’. The incredibly inventive Johannesburg-born artist has constantly pushed boundaries and bent genres in her multimedia dance work, often favourably compared to the idea of ‘photo collages’, or colourful visual masterpieces that carefully and certainly uniquely address some of the most difficult and complex issues that surround her country’s history and … Continue reading SIFA 2017: And So You See… Our Honourable Blue Sky And Ever Enduring Sun… Can Only Be Consumed Slice By Slice… By Robyn Orlin (Review)

SIFA 2017: Germinal by Halory Goerger, Antoine Defoort (Review)

If French philosopher Jacques Derrida were still alive today and caught Germinal, one wonders what the creator of deconstruction himself might have made of the show. To deconstruct an object or concept, one essentially takes it completely apart in all its complexities, almost like laying out all the parts of a well oiled machine, reducing it to the sum of its contents. What seems like an act … Continue reading SIFA 2017: Germinal by Halory Goerger, Antoine Defoort (Review)