Arts, Books, By The Book, Interview, literature, Preview, Singapore

Book Review: Beauty Queens of Bishan by Akshita Nanda

A celebration of womanhood and femininity in all their facets, set against the ever-intriguing world of pageants. Love it or loathe it, everyone wants to feel pretty. And in this age of reality TV, celebrity worship and social media obsession, it’s becoming increasingly harder to match up to society’s standards of beauty, what with the bar being continually raised. The business of beauty is booming, … Continue reading Book Review: Beauty Queens of Bishan by Akshita Nanda

bakchormeeboyDecember 13, 2019April 4, 2020Leave a comment

Arts, Singapore, Theatre

Review: Operatic Identities by CulturedGen

Modernising Chinese Opera for a contemporary audience. It’s not often that one thinks of ‘Instagram museums’ or immersive exhibitions as having a strong educational focus, but with CulturedGen’s Operatic Identities, the experiment in form has yielded success in making Beijing Opera ‘cool’ and intriguing. Conceptualised by Summer Song as inspired by her mother, a Beijing Opera performer and educator in Singapore, the idea behind Operatic Identities stemmed from … Continue reading Review: Operatic Identities by CulturedGen

bakchormeeboyDecember 3, 2019Leave a comment

Arts, Review, Singapore, Theatre

Review: Peter Pan In Serangoon Gardens by W!ld Rice

★★★★☆ (Performance attended 29/11/19) Pan-tastic end to W!ld Rice’s 2019 season reminding audiences of the magic of childhood and belief. The wonderful thing about W!ld Rice’s pantomimes is that while very much focused on creating a year-end show that children can enjoy, these same shows are also very much family affairs, allowing even the adult audiences to slip into the same mindset and simple joy … Continue reading Review: Peter Pan In Serangoon Gardens by W!ld Rice

bakchormeeboyDecember 3, 2019December 3, 20195 Comments

Arts, musical, Review, Sands Theatre, Singapore, SRT, Theatre

Review: Sweeney Todd – The Demon Barber of Fleet Street by Atlantis Theatrical Entertainment, Presented by Singapore Repertory Theatre

★★★★☆ (Performance attended 28/11/19) Reimagined version of Sondheim’s macabre musical thriller a refreshing take on an oft-forgotten classic, with Broadway star Lea Salonga a highlight. In the Victorian era, penny dreadfuls were some of the more popular forms of entertainment, a serialised form of literature that derives its name from how every issue would cost just one penny. As for the ‘dreadful’ portion, well, that … Continue reading Review: Sweeney Todd – The Demon Barber of Fleet Street by Atlantis Theatrical Entertainment, Presented by Singapore Repertory Theatre

bakchormeeboyDecember 2, 2019December 2, 2019Leave a comment

Art What!, Arts, Preview

Affordable Art Fair Singapore Total Sales Surpass $45 Million On Milestone 10th Edition

Affordable Art Fair Singapore closed on Sunday (24 November) after welcoming 13,000 visitors and SG $3.4 million in art sales. The fair saw a strong increase of 20% in the number of artworks finding happy homes with experienced collectors discovering new artists as well as first time buyers starting their art collections. Visitors were inspired to expand their art knowledge and explore their creativity at … Continue reading Affordable Art Fair Singapore Total Sales Surpass $45 Million On Milestone 10th Edition

bakchormeeboyNovember 30, 2019Leave a comment

Arts, musical, Preview, Sands Theatre, Singapore, SRT, Theatre

God, That’s Good!: An Interview with Lea Salonga and Jett Pangan, Stars of Sweeney Todd – The Demon Barber of Fleet Street

Celebrating its 40th anniversary this year, it’s a wonder that the Stephen Sondheim musical thriller has never before been brought to Singapore. Thankfully, Atlantis Theatrical Entertainment Group and the Singapore Repertory Theatre are here to resolve that, as Sweeney Todd hits the Sands Theatre at Marina Bay Sands for a two week run, fresh from a critically-acclaimed run in Manila. Beyond the fact that it’ll be making … Continue reading God, That’s Good!: An Interview with Lea Salonga and Jett Pangan, Stars of Sweeney Todd – The Demon Barber of Fleet Street

bakchormeeboyNovember 28, 2019Leave a comment

Arts, Singapore, Theatre

Review: Beach Burden Bliss – A Double Bill @ Punggol Beach by Desert Wine Productions

★☆☆☆☆ (Performance attended 16/11/19, 6pm) An interesting site-specific concept gone awry with flat script, unintentional camp, and its inability to fully incorporate the site organically into the production. When one thinks of a theatre, Punggol Beach isn’t exactly the first venue that comes to mind. With unstable, sandy ground, the sound of waves crashing over nearby rocks and limited lighting when night falls, the prospect … Continue reading Review: Beach Burden Bliss – A Double Bill @ Punggol Beach by Desert Wine Productions

bakchormeeboyNovember 27, 2019November 27, 2019Leave a comment

Arts, Review, Singapore, Theatre

Review: Rumah Dayak by Rupa co.lab

★★★★☆ (Performance attended 23/11/19, Matinee) Nessa Anwar’s sophomore full length play proves her mastery over capturing natural conversation and social realism. Presented by new theatre collective Rupa co.lab in their theatrical debut, Rumah Dayak follows a night-hour safehouse for troubled youths in the Malay community. Ironically however, the safehouse itself is facing imminent danger, as they face mounting pressures from the authorities, rising costs of operations, and … Continue reading Review: Rumah Dayak by Rupa co.lab

bakchormeeboyNovember 26, 2019November 26, 20195 Comments

Arts, Concert, Music, Preview

Neon Lights 2019 Wrap-Up: Music That Brings People Together, Rain or Shine

The annual Neon Lights Festival returned to Fort Canning last weekend, bringing with them a host of art and music acts both international and regional for one heck of a good time, regardless of age. With the gates opening from 1pm, Fort Canning saw a flurry of activity happening all the way till the end of the day, as families, friends and music lovers of … Continue reading Neon Lights 2019 Wrap-Up: Music That Brings People Together, Rain or Shine

bakchormeeboyNovember 26, 2019Leave a comment

Arts, Comedy, Music, Preview, Singapore

Laughter Is: Kenny Sebastian’s The Most Interesting Person In The Room (Review)

With nearly 2 million subscribers on YouTube, an Amazon Video series, a Netflix special and still more, at just age 28, comedian Kenny Sebastian is nothing short of a success story, further evidenced by the almost full crowd at the Shine Auditorium last Friday. Cheering his name even before he came onstage, the crowd of fans were evidently incredibly enthusiastic at the chance to catch the … Continue reading Laughter Is: Kenny Sebastian’s The Most Interesting Person In The Room (Review)