Preview: Toy Factory’s DIRECT ENTRY returns with new play, “For My Highness” by Shaleihin Pi’ee

Toy Factory Productions Ltd’s director-mentorship programme, DIRECT ENTRY, returns for it’s second season to bestow promising theatre director, Adeeb Fazah with a timely original script, For My Highness – which spotlights on the crippling vices of substance abuse and its inevitable infliction onto familial ties. DIRECT ENTRY is spearheaded and mentored by award-winning director, Goh Boon Teck, as an initiative to nurture more theatre directors … Continue reading Preview: Toy Factory’s DIRECT ENTRY returns with new play, “For My Highness” by Shaleihin Pi’ee

Kalaa Utsavam 2022: An Interview with Playwright/Director A Yagnya on ‘Between 5 Cows and the Deep Blue Sea’

When theatremaker A Yagnya’s play Between 5 Cows and the Deep Blue Sea was given a dramatised reading in 2020, we praised it as ‘relatable, fun and poignant’, impressed and hoping for it to receive a full staging at some point. 2 years later, and that staging is finally happening, as part of the Esplanade’s 2022 Kalaa Utsavam – Indian Festival of Arts. Written and … Continue reading Kalaa Utsavam 2022: An Interview with Playwright/Director A Yagnya on ‘Between 5 Cows and the Deep Blue Sea’

Kingdoms Apart: An Interview with Playwright/Director Chong Tze Chien on adapting the Mahābhārata

The Indian epic The Mahabharata is often considered ‘the longest poem ever written’, charting an age old battle between two groups of cousins in the Kurukshetra War for power. To date, it remains one of the most well-known texts in world mythology, and has received countless retellings and adaptations over the years. For theatremaker Chong Tze Chien, The Mahabharata has held a special place in … Continue reading Kingdoms Apart: An Interview with Playwright/Director Chong Tze Chien on adapting the Mahābhārata

Sibeh Strange: An Interview with Jonathan Lim and Judy Ngo on the long-anticipated return of their signature Chestnuts parody show

In its heyday, the Chestnuts series was one of Singapore’s most popular and beloved parody shows. Known as Singapore’s ‘first and longest running parody shows’, since their humble beginnings in 1996, the team have grown and evolved over the years from strength to strength, going from Christmas sketch shows at the now-defunct Jubilee Hall, to a massive SG50 special edition in 2015 at the Drama … Continue reading Sibeh Strange: An Interview with Jonathan Lim and Judy Ngo on the long-anticipated return of their signature Chestnuts parody show

Practice Tuckshop’s Recess Time Receives #CreateCOP27 Honourable Mention

The Theatre Practice has announced that Practice Tuckshop’s flagship programme Recess Time has been chosen as one of the twenty honourable mentions for #CreateCOP27.  An “ugly” produce lunch party, Recess Time is a long-running participatory work which stages a social event, i.e. lunch, as the site for performance and engagement. Combining cooking, making conversation and storytelling into a single encounter, invited home cooks and professional … Continue reading Practice Tuckshop’s Recess Time Receives #CreateCOP27 Honourable Mention

Preview: M1 Singapore Fringe Festival 2023

It feels like just yesterday that we were still in January 2022, but with 2 months left before the new year, it’s about time to preview 2023’s arts season as we always do with the first major performing arts festival of the year – the annual M1 Singapore Fringe Festival (M1SFF). Organised by The Necessary Stage, 2023’s edition of M1SFF marks the first time in … Continue reading Preview: M1 Singapore Fringe Festival 2023

Preview: Chestnuts – Sibeh Strange in the Multiverse

In the West, Christmas is all about chestnuts roasting on an open fire. But here in Singapore, we’ve been missing those chestnuts for a long time now. No, not gao lak, but beloved parody sketch show Chestnuts, who last put up a show a whole seven years ago. This November, the team are back with a whole new production, with Chestnuts – Sibeh Strange in … Continue reading Preview: Chestnuts – Sibeh Strange in the Multiverse

Preview: Offending The Audience and Dream School by Emergency Stairs and Nanyang Academy of Fine Arts

Curated and produced by Emergency Stairs Artistic Director Liu Xiaoyi, in association with Nanyang Academy of Fine Arts, this November, watch as two productions question the very nature of the various artistic disciplines we practise, learn, and teach, as Singapore prepares itself to welcome the newly founded University of the Arts in 2024. Directed by Ang Gey Pin, with performers from NAFA Diploma in Theatre … Continue reading Preview: Offending The Audience and Dream School by Emergency Stairs and Nanyang Academy of Fine Arts

Review: Both Sides, Now – Lepaskan Sesalan by Drama Box and ArtsWok Collaborative

Forum theatre that touches the heartlands and opens a conversation on difficult end-of-life issues. It’s not every day that you get to see a theatre pop-up happening in your neighbourhood. Following on from their Kata-Kata Kita Variety Show last year, Drama Box and ArtsWok Collaborative came together once again to present the next iteration of their ongoing Both Sides, Now: Mengukir Harapan project, with a … Continue reading Review: Both Sides, Now – Lepaskan Sesalan by Drama Box and ArtsWok Collaborative

★★★★★ Review: Dragon Ladies Don’t Weep by Margaret Leng Tan

Fragments of memory and avant garde performance come together for a singular work that could only be performed by Singapore’s most famous toy pianist. Category Score (out of 10) Performer (Margaret Leng Tan) 9 Composition (Erik Griswold) 9 Direction (Tamara Saulwick) 8 Video (Nick Roux) 9 Lighting (Andy Lim) 8 Costume (Yuan Zhiying) 8 Total 51/60 (85%) Stars ★★★★★ Born in 1945, experimental musician Margaret … Continue reading ★★★★★ Review: Dragon Ladies Don’t Weep by Margaret Leng Tan