DRAMATURGS & is a capsule series of roundtable conversations centering the work of and relationship between dramaturgs and their artistic collaborators. Dramaturgical thinking and application is integral in the work of all artists, yet a dramaturg’s role affords a dedicated lens that can expand and challenge artistic decisions. In cosy and candid sessions, we aim to unpack the relational, intricate and often invisible work of dramaturgs in creative processes and within artistic teams. The fourth in
Tools is a workshop series by our visiting resident playwright Sean Dunnington for playwrights curious about theatricality - the unique magic of theatre that invites audiences to “believe” what they see on stage is true-to-life, even while knowing it's not real (to an extent). Each session dives into a specific element of this conceptual spell, blending discussion, hands-on activities, performance, and experimentation.These workshops are suitable for playwrights/writers who are engaged with/thinking about c
PE*IS is a devised performance responding to Descendants of the Eunuch Admiral.One of theatre doyen Kuo Pao Kun's most well-known and beloved plays, Descendants of the Eunuch Admiral was first staged in 1995 by TheatreWorks (now T:>Works) as part of the Festival of Asian Performing Arts. Descendants explored the life and times of Admiral Zheng He, the legendary eunuch of China - his infamous castration and his historically renowned maritime expeditions in the 1400s. It drew parallels between his experien
Sound Plot is Centre 42’s audio plays series, each edition drawing on a certain geographic area in Singapore. This edition, produced in collaboration with the NTU Museum, zooms in on Jurong West and its surrounding area, where the university is located. Two plays were selected through our Open Call, guided by the curatorial prompt "Ulu", and one play was selected from submissions by participants of our Audio Drama Writing Workshop.The audio plays will be launched from 27 January 2025 onwards. Stay tuned for
Centre 42, NTU Museum
Start: 20 January 2025
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Centre 42 incubates original writing for production development, provides space and resources for artists and new work creation, and runs a functional archive documenting the histories and processes of Singapore theatre.
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In this interpretation of the text, the figure of Admiral Zheng He, both icon and iconoclast, undergoes further interrogation. Importing their own cultural background as Singaporean Malays into the work, the artists involved will seek the spaces in the text which will allow them to question their own hybrid and syncretic identities. Various composite layers will be added to Kuo's already rich and multifarious text, which will include parallel texts from Malay historical documents, as well as extensions of v
Tough to Swallow
It is often difficult to approach a play with established history, especially one that holds as much significance as Descendants of the Eunuch Admiral. Written by Kuo Pao Kun and first staged in 1995, Descendants has since become a Singapore classic – a powerful tale of identity and modernity, ideas that have been and still are prevalent in our society.
Jeff Chen’s no-holds-barred adaptation of the play is one that plunges the traditional script into a variety of abstra