SIFA 2025: An Interview with Rizman Putra, Zul Mahmod and thesupersystem on ‘Umbilical’

In an age of rapid progress, history can slip through our fingers. Premiering as part of the 2025 Singapore International Festival of Arts (SIFA), Zul Mahmod, Rizman Putra, and thesupersystem (Heider Ismail) invite us to Umbilical, a multi-faceted performance that invites us into the depths of memory, identity, and the subtle violence of separation, excavating the history of the Causeway as Singapore turns 60. Umbilical … Continue reading SIFA 2025: An Interview with Rizman Putra, Zul Mahmod and thesupersystem on ‘Umbilical’

SIFA 2025: An Interview with Lebanese artist Ali Chahrour on ‘Told By My Mother’

Being a mother has never been an easy task, but what about a mother who tries to be good, to protect her children amidst a country torn apart by conflict? In Told By My Mother, making its Singapore premiere this May as part of the 2025 Singapore International Festival of Arts (SIFA), Lebanese artist Ali Chahrour draws from his own family history—and from the fractures … Continue reading SIFA 2025: An Interview with Lebanese artist Ali Chahrour on ‘Told By My Mother’

Preview: Singapore International Festival of Arts 2025 – More Than Ever

The annual Singapore International Festival of Arts (SIFA) returns from 16 May to 1 June with the theme More Than Ever. Organised by Arts House Limited (AHL) and commissioned by the National Arts Council (NAC), this 2025 edition of Singapore’s pinnacle performing arts festival presents a dynamic line-up that spotlights Singapore’s cultural vitality and boldness in defining its present and its vision for the future. … Continue reading Preview: Singapore International Festival of Arts 2025 – More Than Ever

★★★★★ Review: Sun & Sea by Rugilė Barzdžiukaitė, Vaiva Grainytė & Lina Lapelytė

Intrusive thoughts during a beach holiday at the end of the world. In our modern world of stresses and being constantly online, how much can we say we can truly detach ourselves from work and take a relaxing holiday? For Lithuanian artists Rugilė Barzdžiukaitė, Vaiva Grainytė and Lina Lapelytė, it seems that any vacation will be bound to be filled with intrusive thoughts, and unexpectedly, … Continue reading ★★★★★ Review: Sun & Sea by Rugilė Barzdžiukaitė, Vaiva Grainytė & Lina Lapelytė

★★★★☆ Review: REFUGE by The Observatory

Multisensory journey transporting audiences to Perak’s Lenggong Valley, in all its natural and mystical beauty. Modern Singapore rarely leaves much space or opportunity for truly connecting with nature. As much as we tout ourselves as a garden city, green spaces are often integrated into the urban landscape, rather than allowed to simply grow amok, or we lack older geological formations teeming with life. So if … Continue reading ★★★★☆ Review: REFUGE by The Observatory

★★★☆☆ Review: Wilful Machine by Genevieve Chua

Pondering a future of machine self-awareness, as it reflects on humanity. If machines could talk, what might they say of humans – their makers? Genevieve Chua’s new work Wilful Machine imagines and brings that to life, using a combination of architecture, multimedia and dance, as it premiered at the Singapore International Festival of Arts 2024. Situated at Artspace @ Helutrans at Tanjong Pagar Distripark, audiences … Continue reading ★★★☆☆ Review: Wilful Machine by Genevieve Chua

★★★★☆ Review: Leonardo! A Wonderful Show About A Terrible Monster by Manual Cinema

Demystifying the sorcery of cinema while capturing the magic of puppetry and animation. In a world where kids are almost constantly glued to the screen – how does one keep them entertained in the theatre? By bringing the screen to the stage of course. That is the modus operandi of American company Manual Cinema, who creates films live onstage for their audiences, and in an … Continue reading ★★★★☆ Review: Leonardo! A Wonderful Show About A Terrible Monster by Manual Cinema

★★★★☆ Review: SUARA / Oro Rua by Safuan Johari and Eddie Elliott

Unearthing the voices of a distant past. Safuan Johari is a musician and composer from Singapore. Eddie Elliott is a dancer and choreographer from New Zealand. While the two artists’ practices seem rather distant, there is a link that makes them surprisingly good collaborators with each other – their shared respect for their own cultural inheritance, and a keen interest in the land we walk … Continue reading ★★★★☆ Review: SUARA / Oro Rua by Safuan Johari and Eddie Elliott

★★★★☆ Review: The Romeo by Trajal Harrell

Drawing from historical form to imagine a new canon of dance, including everybody and any body. Conceptualised by Trajal Harrell, it’s hard to pin down exactly what The Romeo is. While ostensibly categorised as a dance, The Romeo is also a work that is completely fictional, and expanding beyond mere choreography to imagine a history and legacy. In the space of the theatre where The … Continue reading ★★★★☆ Review: The Romeo by Trajal Harrell

★★★★☆ Review: Moby Dick by Plexus Polaire (SIFA 2024)

Glimmers of terrible beauty amidst a savage, age-old battle of man versus nature. The beauty of a novel like Moby Dick has always lain in how open to interpretation it is, where everything from the tumult of the sea, to the conversations between crewmates, to the chase for the elusive white whale itself becomes a metaphor for whatever one might be going through in life … Continue reading ★★★★☆ Review: Moby Dick by Plexus Polaire (SIFA 2024)