ANGKAT: A Definitive, Alternative, Reclaimed Narrative of a Native subverts norms of genre and dramatic form to tell the intertwining histories of a mother and daughter, and a re-imagining of a young Singapura trying to find her footing amidst the rough seas.

Salma, an aspiring singer, is an adopted child whose struggle with identity is played out on a national stage.

Mak, a former islander, tries to process the loss of her home from the mainland, with a little help from some friends.

The play blends fantasy and fact, history and the imagined future, and the national, personal and magical to explore and empower hidden narratives of the Singapore story.

Credit source: M1 Singapore Fringe Festival 2019

ANGKAT: A Definitive, Alternative, Reclaimed Narrative of a Native was developed under Centre 42's Basement Workshop (now known as the Creation Residency). Read about Basement Workshop here.

Development Milestones

December 2018 - January 2019.

In-Residence at Basement Workshop

by Centre 42

24 – 26 January 2019

World Premiere at NAFA Studio Theatre, as part of M1 Singapore Fringe Festival 2019

Creation Process

In 2015, Nabilah Said join Centre 42’s Boiler Room through an open call. She was working on a play titled State Land, which was about people who used to live on Singapore’s offshore islands before being forced to move to the mainland. At the same time, as an associate artist in residence at Teater Ekamatra, she was also working on another piece called Angkat, about the common and informal practice of adoption in Malay families.

Nabilah went on a hiatus in July 2016 for six months when she had difficulty developing both works further. When she came back on January 2017, she decided to incorporate her ideas for State Land into Angkat. Subsequently, a test read of of Angkatwas done in September 2017 at Centre 42 to conclude her Boiler Room Journey. Read more about Nabilah’s Boiler Room journey here.

At the end of 2017, Teater Ekamatra staged the piece, which was directed by Irfan Kasban. There were new scenes devised which took the production to a different direction.

Nabilah still wanted to develop her original idea for Angkat, and hence reached out to director Noor Effendy Ibrahim. Together they submitted the piece to the M1 Singapore Fringe Festival open call which was then accepted for 2019 Festival. Her play was renamed ANGKAT: A Definitive, Alternative, Reclaimed Narrative of a Native.