Showing 1 - 7 of 7
A stroll through nostalgia and hope
Life, Amitha Amranand, Published on 21/04/2022
» After the first Covid lockdown in Thailand in 2020, the first performance that brought Bangkok theatregoers back to the physical space was Fullfat Theatre's Save For Later. At that time, the number of cases in Thailand was at a negligible level, and the idea of physical distancing and other pandemic measures were still a novelty. These inconveniences and constraints inspired and pushed theatre artists to experiment and create. Digital technology had a large presence in live performances back then, even in on-site ones.
In the presence of others
Life, Amitha Amranand, Published on 14/07/2022
» My experience with Samara Hersch's online version of Body Of Knowledge (At Home), which was part of Germany's Impulse Theater Festival last year, has since got me interested in the question of what it is we do in theatre as audience. In Body Of Knowledge, the audience engaged in conversations with teenagers via WhatsApp, they in their own home, we in ours. The performance made me more attuned to the act of listening -- something we do in theatre without thinking or being asked to.
Performance in the wild
Life, Amitha Amranand, Published on 26/05/2022
» For Kok Heng Leun, memories of Pulau Ubin, an island northeast of mainland Singapore, go as far back as when he was a teenager.
The evolution of khon
Life, Amitha Amranand, Published on 22/04/2021
» Choreographer Jitti Chompee's ongoing khon project, which includes Melancholy Of Demon, a dance performance that I reviewed earlier this month, is supported by the Ministry of Culture and departments and offices under its umbrella. This is a surprising level of governmental support granted to a contemporary dance artist who wants to do not-so-genteel things with khon and the character of Tossakan. I still remember how in 2006 the Ministry of Culture reportedly forced Somtow Sucharitkul to change the scene in his opera Ayodhya that depicted the death of Tossakan (Ravan in the opera version) onstage, a practice that is considered a bad omen in Thailand.
Questions for looking inward, outward and forward
Life, Amitha Amranand, Published on 24/12/2020
» At the end of each year, I usually end with a summary and pick of the best theatre productions of the year. However, 2020 has been such an unusual year for everyone, a year of cancelled performances, cancelled travel plans, and digital migration of festivals and panel discussions.
By artists, for artists
Life, Amitha Amranand, Published on 05/10/2022
» There were rugs, cushions, couches and chairs. There were TVs. There were books for browsing and perusing. There were vegetable gardens. In one, there was a beautiful woven bamboo structure, under which people cooked, ate and talked. There was a room for children, too. For the bigger kids, there was a small skateboarding ramp.
Where does a performance begin?
Life, Amitha Amranand, Published on 03/03/2020
» Where does a performance begin? This is the question I kept asking myself during TPAM Performing Arts Meeting in Yokohama this year.