Preview: Music From Turn of the Century by Ding Yi Music Company

After a rousing concert in June at the Singapore Conference Hall, Ding Yi Music Company returns this July with a far more intimate affair at the Esplanade Recital Studio with Music From Turn of the Century.  In this concert, for the first time ever, Singapore’s foremost Chinese Chamber Music company will be led and conducted by Cultural Medallion recipient and Singapore Chinese Orchestra Music Director Tsung Yeh. This … Continue reading Preview: Music From Turn of the Century by Ding Yi Music Company

Review: ‘A Song of Life’ Concert by Sachiyo

There’s something about the Esplanade Recital Studio that is so special, given the intimacy it affords. This intimacy is what gives rise to the power of Japanese singer songwriter Sachiyo Nakagaki’s beautiful voice, crisp, sensual and chic as it wafted through the Recital Studio in her ‘A Song of Life’ concert last Wednesday (27th June). Sachiyo’s voice lends itself perfectly to the kind of music … Continue reading Review: ‘A Song of Life’ Concert by Sachiyo

Preview: The Cyclist by Intercultural Theatre Institute

Following a thought provoking first public production in March, the latest batch of Intercultural Theatre Institute (ITI) graduating students return to the Drama Centre Black Box to present their second show of the year: Vijay Tendulkar’s The Cyclist. Translated into English by Balwant Bhaneja, The Cyclist tells of the adventure of life from the perspective of a nameless cyclist as she sets off on a solo journey. But this is … Continue reading Preview: The Cyclist by Intercultural Theatre Institute

Review: 《告亲夫》Prosecuting the Husband by Nam Hwa Opera

The Chinese Opera I experienced growing up was always a very communal type of activity. Setting up makeshift stilt stages on the roadside, I’d join my excited grandparents as they dragged us along to watch in the evenings, particularly closer to the seventh month periods. As much as I never did master any dialect, these operas remained a fascinating aspect of my childhood as the … Continue reading Review: 《告亲夫》Prosecuting the Husband by Nam Hwa Opera

Preview: ‘A Song of Life’ Concert by Sachiyo

Singapore-based, Japanese singer-songwriter Sachiyo will be staging her all new concert at the Esplanade Recital Studio next week. Having lived in Singapore since the age of four, the talented performer weaves elements from both Singapore and Japan into her songs, whose lyrical content is inspired by her own life. This concert will mark the 20th anniversary of the singer, and through her music, will tell … Continue reading Preview: ‘A Song of Life’ Concert by Sachiyo

Television Time: BBC’s The Split

There’s both tenderness amidst blood in the water as cutthroat divorce lawyers battle it out in court and at home.  Just as Alan Ball did with a family funeral business in Six Feet Under, Abi Morgan’s (Shame, The Iron Lady, Suffragette) new BBC series does with a family law firm, mining high drama as the professional meets the personal. In The Split, we follow divorce lawyer Hannah Defoe (Nicola Walker, best known … Continue reading Television Time: BBC’s The Split

Review: My Grandfather’s Road by Neo Kim Seng (Cantonese versions, performed by Tan Cher Kian and Gary Tang)

Two ways to tell a poignant story of growing up in Cantonese.  First written as a book, in My Grandfather’s Road, Neo Kim Seng explores his familial history through the lens and geography of a bygone Singapore, thinking of his childhood growing up on what is literally his grandfather’s road (Neo Pee Teck Lane) and told through personal memories and anecdotes. While we previously watched the full … Continue reading Review: My Grandfather’s Road by Neo Kim Seng (Cantonese versions, performed by Tan Cher Kian and Gary Tang)

M1 CONTACT Contemporary Dance Festival 2018: EARTH and Filled with sadness, the old body attacks by T.H.E Dance Company (Review)

A double-bill of movement heavy pieces open the 2018 M1 CONTACT Contemporary Dance Festival. T.H.E Dance Company opened the 2018 M1 CONTACT Contemporary Dance Festival with a double bill of work. Featuring ‘EARTH’ by Humanhood and ‘Filled with sadness, the old body attacks’ by Kim Jae Duk, the festival kicked off to a strong start with both these thought-provoking, physically challenging pieces.  EARTH by Humanhood In … Continue reading M1 CONTACT Contemporary Dance Festival 2018: EARTH and Filled with sadness, the old body attacks by T.H.E Dance Company (Review)

My Father My Champion – International Champions Cup Father’s Day Sale

Love your dad but don’t know how to show it? Father’s Day may be over, but this exclusive Father’s Day sale for the International Champions Cup (ICC) Singapore! If your dad loves soccer, then this sale is absolutely for you! Soccer, of course, has its share of famous father-son pairs, ranging from the legendary John Cruyff and his son Jordi to AC Milan Hall of … Continue reading My Father My Champion – International Champions Cup Father’s Day Sale

Review: Framed, By Adolf by The Finger Players

Dark fairytale meets con-job for justice in this story-within-a-story about the holocaust and art. The art world is fickle and subjective, with the monetary worth of a painting determined by market forces and its value by its frame, specifically the way a backstory ‘frames’ and positions an artwork to give it legitimacy. But even the volatile art market is in agreement that a controversial work … Continue reading Review: Framed, By Adolf by The Finger Players