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What is it in real LIFE that inspires the ART on stage? How does ART relate to, engage with, and resonate LIFE?
The Art and Life Sessions is a series of free lively forums about the urgent issues of the day. Engage with some of the most forward thinking minds of “the concerned citizenry” - personalities, artists, activists and academics - to exchange views and opinions about the pressing issues of our times. Venue: Drama Centre, Level 3, Function Room 3
FREE ADMISSION, on a first-come-first seated basis Session 1
LIFE: Regardless of Race: Uncomfortable Silences, Unfounded Fears
ART: The Swordfish, then The Concubine, angel-ism
Date: Sunday, 10 August 2008
Time: 5.30pm – 7.00pm
Why are race and religion such taboo topics in Singapore? How has Singapore theatre contributed to ongoing debates about race, language, religion and ethnicity? In what ways have the idea of four official races limited our understanding of one another? Should we start speaking about a Singaporean race?
Panelists:
Kok Heng Leun - Artistic Director, Drama Box
Aidli ‘Alin’ Mosbit - Artistic Director, panggung ARTS
Lim Kean Bon – Graduate student and author of Performing Whose Identity?: Singapore Malay Theatre and the Politics of Malayness
Dr Kenneth Paul Tan - Assistant Professor, Lee Kuan Yew School of Public Policy, author of Cinema and Television in Singapore: Resistance in One Dimension
Constance Singam - President of Association of Women for Action and Research (AWARE)
Moderator:Alfian Sa’at - Resident Playwright, W!LD RICE and Dramaturg, OCBC Singapore Theatre Festival
Session 2
LIFE: We The Citizens: Unsung Heroines, Unwritten Histories
ART: The Last Temptation of Stamford Raffles, I Am Queen
Date: Saturday, 16 August 2008
Time: 5.30pm – 7.00pm
What is the Singapore Story and who are its leading actors? What other kinds of histories are waiting backstage for their turn? Can history be more than a monologue by the victorious and the powerful? How can we mine social memory and cultural works to create our own alternative histories?
Panelists:
Ng Yi-Sheng - Playwright, The Last Temptation of Raffles
Dr Quah Sy Ren - Playwright, I Am Queen, Deputy Head of Chinese, NTU
Dr Syed Khairuddin Aljunied - Lecturer, Department of Malay Studies, NUS and author of Rethinking Raffles: A Study of Stamford Raffles’ Discourse on Religions Amongst Malays
Tan Pin Pin - Filmmaker, Invisible City, Singapore GaGa
Moderator: Dr Paul Rae - Playwright, Tree Duet and Lecturer, NUS Dept of Theatre Studies
Session 3
LIFE: To Build A **** Society: Uncharted Territories, Untested Waters
ART: Apocalypse: LIVE!
Date: Saturday, 23 August 2008
Time: 5.30pm – 7.00pm
In the future, an environmentally-conscious Singapore will be a multiparty democracy, supported by a free press and a vibrant civil society. In a worldwide poll, Singaporeans are reported as the happiest people in Asia. We can dream, can’t we? We speak to some young people about their wishlist for Singapore’s future.
Panelists:
Laremy Lee - Playwright, Own Time Own Target
Choo Zheng Xi - Editor, The Online Citizen, http://theonlinecitizen.com
Bernise Ang - Founder, SYINC – a network of Youth in Singapore for social change
Seelan Pillay - Artist and Social Activist
Moderator: Ken Kwek - Playwright, Apocalypse: LIVE!
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