Ong Keng Sen (b. 1964, Singapore–), the critically acclaimed artistic director of TheatreWorks, a local theatre company, is best known for his intercultural Shakespeare-inspired trilogy of works – Lear, Desdemona and Search: Hamlet. He was the artistic director ...

The Straits Times’ Life! Theatre Awards was inaugurated in 2001. It is organised by Life!, the arts and entertainment section of the newspaper The Strait Times, to acknowledge the contributions of theatre productions in Singapore. First announced on 4 January 2000, ...

One of Singapore’s most successful local puppet troupes, The Finger Players (TFP) is a non-profit company founded in February 1996 by Tan Beng Tian and Ong Kian Sin as a unit of Kuo Pao Kun’s The Theatre Practice (formerly known as Practice Theatre Ensemble). Other ...

TheatreWorks is Singapore’s flagship English language theatre company formed in 1985 by theatre practitioners Lim Siauw Chong, Lim Kay Tong and Justin Hill. The company aims to develop and nurture local artists, promote and support Singaporean writing and literature, ...

Dream Academy Productions (DAP) is a theatre production company established by local actress and comedian Selena Tan in 2000. The company is well known for its comedic productions featuring music and satire, such as the popular Dim Sum Dollies and Broadway Beng. ...

W!LD RICE is a professional theatre company started in 2000 by actor, playwright and director Ivan Heng. Staging shows in Singapore and abroad, the company brings Singaporean theatre to international audiences and provides a platform for local theatrical talents. ...

Chin Woon Ping’s Details Cannot Body Wants was the first Singapore play to receive a Restricted (R) rating, which grants admission only to viewers at least 18 years of age. First performed at The Substation’s Guinness Theatre on 12 September 1992, it was one of ...

Staged on 10 August 1988, Kuo Pao Kun’s Mama Looking for Her Cat was Singapore’s first multilingual play. Performed by the Practice Theatre Ensemble, the play focuses on the theme of Singapore’s multiracial, multicultural and multilingual society, brought out by ...

S. Varathan (b. 22 February 1934, Singapore –), recipient of the National Arts Council Cultural Medallion in 1984, has played an active role in the local Tamil drama scene as an artiste, director, founder, producer, writer and researcher.

Teater Ekamatra was founded by playwright, dramatist and director Lut Ali and his wife Rubie Lazim in 1988 to develop contemporary experimental Malay theatre that fuses traditional Southeast Asian theatre styles with contemporary techniques. This was a departure ...

Kumarason Chinnadurai (b. 10 August 1968, Singapore–), popularly known as Kumar, is a stand-up comedian, actor, host and drag queen. He made his name at the now defunct cabaret nightclub Boom Boom Room, and was for a time synonymous with the club as its headlining ...

Wayang kulit is a form of traditional theatre in Southeast Asia. It involves a puppet shadow play performance with origins that are possibly linked to the Indian shadow play. There are many forms and types of wayang kulit in Asia. Those performed in Peninsular ...

Lim Chor Pee (b. 1936, Penang, Malaysia–d. 5 December 2006, Singapore) was an established lawyer and a pioneer playwright in Singapore. He was among the first batch of playwrights in the 1960s who planted the seeds of local English-language theatre in Singapore. ...

Chong Tze Chien, 张子健 (b. 1974, Singapore–) is a talented and versatile playwright. One of Singapore’s brightest playwrights, Chong has been compared to heavyweights such as Arthur Miller and Kuo Pao Kun by Casey Lim, the former associate artistic director of TheatreWorks. ...

The National Theatre was a public theatre used for performances, concerts and conferences that was situated at the corner of Clemenceau Avenue and River Valley Road. Built to commemorate Singapore's achievement of self-government in 1959, it was also known as the ...

Goh Eng Wah (b. 1923, Muar, Johor, Malaysia–d. 5 September 2015, Singapore) was one of the pioneers of Singapore's film industry. He founded Eng Wah Organisation (now known as Eng Wah Global) in 1946, a major film distributor and cinema operator in Singapore specialising ...

Alfian bin Sa’at (b. 18 July 1977, Singapore–), commonly known as Alfian Sa’at, is a prominent English- and Malay-language playwright, poet and short-story writer in Singapore and Malaysia. Known for his politically charged works, Alfian is notable for being the ...

The Arts Theatre of Singapore (新加坡艺术剧场) is a Chinese-language theatre company whose beginnings can be traced to 1955 when it was established as the Singapore Amateur Players (SAP). In 1995, the SAP registered itself as a non-profit organisation, switched its focus ...

The Victoria Theatre and Concert Hall (VTCH) along Empress Place is Singapore’s oldest performing arts venue. Gazetted as a national monument on 14 February 1992, the VTCH comprises two blocks of building constructed more than 43 years apart, in 1862 and 1905, ...

Michael Chiang (b. 1955, Malaysia–) is a prolific playwright who has received accolades for his contributions to the arts in Singapore. Mostly loved for his comedies and musicals, such as Army Daze and Beauty World, his works have been runaway successes at home ...