Contemporary dance artist Lee Mun Wai presents his artistic response to the works of playwright Elangovan, specifically the three banned plays Talaq, Smegma, and Stoma.

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A Dancemaker’s Response to Three Banned Plays

In a continuing series exploring dance and dramatic text, Singaporean contemporary dance artist Lee Mun Wai responds to three banned plays — Talaq, Smegma and Stoma — written by playwright Elangovan. In a performance that is both structured and improvised, Mun Wai intends to move past the initial shock value of Elangovan’s works, to facilitate and broaden the discussion of the social issues examined in the plays.

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Friday, 24 February 2017
8pm @ Centre 42 Black Box

Admission price: Give-What-You-Can
(Cash only, at the door)

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Lee Mun Wai is an independent dance artist in Singapore. One of the more notable faces in the Singapore dance scene, Mun Wai was a founding member of prominent dance company The Human Expression Dance Company (T.H.E). He was with T.H.E. from 2008 to 2015, performing in most of the company’s repertoire both locally and internationally. His choreograpic works for T.H.E. were also featured in local dance festivals and events. One of his recent works, Permission to Speak Sir, was performed as part of an international showcase of Singapore’s artistic talents which travelled to Beijing, London and New York in 2015. Mun Wai is a 2014 recipient of National Arts Council’s Young Artist Award.

Reading Material About The Plays

Talaq, Smegma and Stoma are plays by Elangovan which were banned from performance in the years 2000, 2006, 2013 respectively. The plays portrayed social tensions and inequalities in stark and often provocative ways, which led regulatory authorities to deny or withdraw their performance licenses.

Although never publicly staged, the three play-texts were published in 2014 in a collection titled The Good, the Bad and the Ugly.

#1: ABOUT TALAQ

#2: ABOUT SMEGMA

#3: ABOUT STOMA

Programme Handout

Contemporary dance artist Lee Mun Wai presents his artistic response to the works of playwright Elangovan, specifically the three banned plays Talaq, Smegma, and Stoma, published in a collection titled The Good, the Bad and the Ugly.

In a continuing series of The Vault exploring dance and dramatic text, Singaporean contemporary dance artist Lee Mun Wai responded to three banned plays – “Talaq” (2000), “Smegma” (2006) and “Stoma” (2013) – written by playwright Elangovan. In a performance that was both structured and improvised, Mun Wai’s intention was to move past the initial shock value of Elangovan’s works, and to facilitate and broaden the discussion of the social issues examined in the plays. Here’s a snapshot of his presentation, which took place at the Centre 42 Black Box on Friday 24 February 2017.

Source: Centre 42 Facebook 

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The Vault: Dancing the Good, the Bad and the Ugly is the second of three presentations exploring dance and Singapore play-text. Through dance, Singaporean contemporary dance artist Lee Mun Wai responds to the plays Talaq, Smegma and Stoma written by playwright Elangovan.

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Contemporary dance artist Lee Mun Wai presents his artistic response to the works of playwright Elangovan, specifically the three banned plays Talaq, Smegma, and Stoma, published in a collection titled The Good, the Bad and the Ugly.

A 45-minute recording of a full-dress rehearsal on 24 February can be viewed below:

Stoma – which refers to a natural opening in the body – is a play written by Elangovan, centring on a disgraced former priest who had been defrocked over alleged sex abuse. Over seven scenes, he undergoes a surreal, graphic process of confession to seek redemption.

Production History

Agni Kootthu [Theatre of Fire] – the theatre company headed by Elangovan and his wife S Thenmoli – had acquired a reputation for producing and staging bold works that tackle topics that are often viewed as taboo. Stoma was no exception, though he insists that the play is not an attack on religion:

Elangovan, who began working on the play last year, however, says: “I am not attacking religion. The play is about someone who abuses his power through the veil of religion.”

Source: Elangovan’s new play fails to get licence by Huang Lijie. In The Straits Times (10 Jan 2013).

Indeed, the play came at a time when a case similar to the play’s premise was unfolding in real life, as an assistant pastor had been arrested for sexually abusing an underaged girl in Singapore:

An assistant pastor of a church was charged in court yesterday with two counts of having oral sex with a minor and one of committing an obscene act with a child. The 45-year-old cannot be named as there is a gag order prohibiting the publication of any information that will lead to the identification of the girl. She was 15 at the time of the alleged offences in 2011 and worshipped at the church.

Source: Pastor accused of sexually abusing girl by Elena Chong. In The Straits Times (15 Jan 2013).

Still, Elangovan later said that he had expected there to be some furore over Stoma:

Elangovan says: “When I was writing Stoma, I knew there would be a tsunami but I thought I would have an opportunity to defend it.”

Source: Elangovan’s new play fails to get licence by Huang Lijie. In The Straits Times (10 Jan 2013).

Stoma was due to be staged at The Substation from 17 to 19 January 2013, directed by Elangovan and starring Hemang Yadav and Gloria Tan. However, Elangovan and Thenmoli were contacted by the Media Development Authority (MDA) the week before opening:

The company was initially scheduled for a meeting with MDA regarding the licence tomorrow, Jan 9, but was given the letter earlier tonight instead.

Source: Agni Kootthu play Stoma banned by Mayo Martin. In TODAY (18 Jan 2013), http://bit.ly/2ltgVxA

The MDA’s letter reads:

We have carefully considered your application for an Arts Entertainment licence to stage the play “Stoma” (the “Play”) from 17-19 January 2013 at the Substation. Please be informed that the licensing authority has determined not to issue you a licence as the content of the Play contains sexually explicit, blasphemous and offensive references and language which would be denigrating to the Catholic and the wider Christian community.

Source: Media Development Authority bans Elangovan’s play. In The Straits Times (9 Jan 2013).

The Straits Times then contacted the MDA for further clarification:

In reply to queries from Life!, a spokesman for the MDA says the licence was rejected because its explicit description of sexual acts with Catholic and Christian iconography exceeded the authority’s classification guidelines. One of the guidelines is that the content of performances should not denigrate religion.

The MDA spokesman says its decision considered the views of its arts consultative panel, a citizen-led content advisory committee for arts performances, which comprises 40 members of various races, religions and ages. He adds that an “overwhelming majority” of the panel found the content to be objectionable and offensive to the Catholic and wider Christian community.

­Source: Elangovan’s new play fails to get licence by Huang Lijie. In The Straits Times (10 Jan 2013).

To date, no one has attempted to stage Stoma again, but it was published in a collection titled The Good, the Bad and the Ugly in 2014 together with Elangovan’s other banned plays, Talaq (2000) and Smegma (2006).

Responses

Elangovan didn’t seem too surprised or bothered by the MDA’s decision – this was, after all, the third time that his play had been banned:

[Elangovan] adds that he is “blasé” about the licence rejection as it is his third time and he does not plan to appeal against the decision. He will bear the cost of the performance, an estimated $1,000, which includes props and fees for the two actors.

Source: Elangovan’s new play fails to get licence by Huang Lijie. In The Straits Times (10 Jan 2013).

He did, however, wish that he had the chance to discuss the work with MDA officials:

Elangovan, who could not attend the meeting in person but was prepared to participate via telephone, says he had expected a discussion and was prepared to defend parts of the play that were found to be objectionable, but there was no opportunity for a dialogue at the meeting.

Source: Elangovan’s new play fails to get licence by Huang Lijie. In The Straits Times (10 Jan 2013).

Reactions to the ban varied, with some believing that the MDA’s decision was justified:

Filmmaker Colin Smith, a Catholic and a regular church-goer, said: “It’s a very precarious balance in Singapore and maybe (MDA) is playing it safe and don’t want to rock the boat, which is fair in a country like Singapore with many religious groups. To any religious community, something like this could possibly be offensive.”

Source: Elangovan play denied licence by Mayo Martin. In TODAY (10 Jan 2013), http://bit.ly/2lgmgpP

While others were concerned that the censorship was unwarranted:

Ms. Janice Koh, 39, Nominated Member of Parliament for the Arts, says: “If censorship is a blunt tool, which the authorities agree should be used with regret and reluctance, then this lever should be rusty and old. I am concerned that with increased use, it may become well-oiled, and therefore easier and easier to exercise.”

Source: Elangovan’s new play fails to get licence by Huang Lijie. In The Straits Times (10 Jan 2013).

And some felt that the MDA should be clearer about their guidelines:

The Substation’s artistic director Noor Effendy Ibrahim, 39, says a statement on why the performance licence was rejected is not sufficient.

“There is no way for the artist to understand better what is offensive,” he says. “There should be greater transparency so that everybody can learn and mature together.”

Source: Elangovan’s new play fails to get licence by Huang Lijie. In The Straits Times (10 Jan 2013).

But there is also hope to find common ground as Singapore’s arts scene grows:

The Necessary Stage artistic director Alvin Tan said that a “mature society” would have allowed this sort of play. “There will be disagreements but that’s the beauty of (an open) discourse that we’re not benefiting from. We should just work on the ratings system and how the public deals with it so we can all coexist.”

Source: Elangovan play denied licence by Mayo Martin. In TODAY (10 Jan 2013), http://bit.ly/2lgmgpP

By Gwen Pew
Published on 21 Feb 2017

The Vault: Dancing the Good, the Bad and the Ugly is the second of three presentations focusing on local dance-makers’ responses to Singapore play-text. In this edition, contemporary dance artist Lee Mum Wai responds to the themes of social injustice in three banned plays by Elangovan. Presented on 24 February 2017, 8pm at Centre 42 Black Box. Admission is give-what-you-can. Find out more about the event here.

Titled after the cheese-like secretions found in genitals, Smegma comprises a series of ten short plays, each examining the many faces of power and exposing a different aspect of exploitation within society. This is how playwright Elangovan describes the multi-vignette work himself :

In every society, the privileged groups’ control over and exploitation of the disadvantaged groups is the key source to social problems. These problems endlessly shape the material and spiritual landscapes of the outsiders. The outsiders’ education and environment generates beliefs and values that are diametrically opposed to the empowered status quo and if unchecked will fester and spread like virulent disease to destroy everything set by the powers that be. […] SMEGMA interrogates the ‘moral, cultural, religious, political, economical legitimacy world’ from many different perspectives of the underdogs and their masters. When the comfort-zone is shattered ugliness rears its head like cheesy SMEGMA.

Source: Smegma by Elangovan (2006).

Some of the colourful characters in the play include a pregnant suicide bomber, a transsexual waiting for God at a train station, an imprisoned ex-politician, a maid about to sleep with her employer, and soldiers who rape women out of patriotism.

Production History

By 2003, Agni Kootthu [Theatre of Fire] was running into financial difficulties. The company did not manage to secure funding from the National Arts Council (NAC), and its staging of Mines in June 2002 did not do well in terms of sales:

Although Mines can be staged, Elangovan is fuming that it was given a last-minute go-ahead and a RA rating even though it contains no nudity or violence. Without the benefit of publicity, only a handful of people turned up when the play opened on Friday. The poor showing added to the financial problems of the theatre group, Agni Kootthu, whose appeal for public funding was rejected by the NAC.

Source: Call him R(A) Elangovan by Gillian Wong. In The Straits Times (22 Jun 2002).

Instead of backing down and turning out something tamer, Elangovan’s next play, Smegma, was even more hard-hitting. Referring to his controversy-courting play-writing career, he says:

“I want to sensitise people by exposing them to issues that maybe sensitive to others,” he said. “I feel the truth is more important than winning literary awards for boot-licking.”

Source: Call him R(A) Elangovan by Gillian Wong. In The Straits Times (22 Jun 2002).

Smegma was due to make its debut performance by Agni Kootthu on 5 and 6 August 2006 at the Guinness Theatre, The Substation. The Media Development Authority (MDA) – which had taken over the task from the Public Entertainment Licensing Unit (PELU) in 2003 – vetted the play and allowed it to go ahead with an RA18 rating:

The play was initially granted a licence from MDA, which was subsequently withdrawn. It was originally given an ‘R(A)’ rating and Agni Kootthu was obliged to announce in its publicity materials that the play contained ‘objectionable language’ and an ‘adult theme’.

Source: Censorship and Liberalisation in Singapore by Terence Chong. In Space and Polity, Vol. 14, No. 3, 235-250 (Dec 2010).

However, MDA later decided to withdraw the licence the day before the show’s opening, citing religious insensitivity:

The Media Development Authority (MDA) is withdrawing the licence for the play “Smegma” written by Elangovan. Comprising 10 playlets, “Smegma” undermines the values underpinning Singapore’s multi-racial, multi-religious society. The play portrays Muslims in a negative light. The Arts Consultative Panel (ACP) was consulted about the play. The majority found most of the content of the play insensitive and inappropriate for staging. The members were concerned that the play could create unhappiness and disaffection amongst Muslims.

Source: MDA press release (4 Aug 2006), http://bit.ly/2kxA25i

It was, according to news reports, the first time that the MDA banned a work from being staged:

Less than 30 hours before it was to open on Saturday evening, the Media Development Authority (MDA) pulled the plug on controversial playwright P Elangovan’s latest work. […] It is the first time the MDA has disallowed the staging of a play since it was formed in 2003.

Source: Early curtains for provocative play by Loh Chee Kong and Ashraf Safdar. In TODAY (5 Aug 2006), http://bit.ly/2kxA25i

Elangovan would later publish Smegma on his own within the same year of its cancelled premiere. The script would also join two of Elangovan’s banned works – Talaq (2000) and Stoma (2013) – in a collection titled The Good, the Bad and the Ugly by Math Paper Press in 2014.

Reactions

S Thenmoli – the president of Agni Kootthu and Elangovan’s wife – voiced her frustration in a press release she sent to the media immediately after hearing that the licence had been revoked:

If MDA had cancelled the licence much earlier, we would not have proceeded with our production. We would have saved our finances but now we have lost so much.

Source: Agni Kootthu’s press release by S Thenmoli. (4 Aug 2006), http://bit.ly/2kZXgCZ

Some believe that it was a deliberate strategy on MDA’s part:

Yet, perhaps more tellingly, MDA left it to the eleventh hour before informing the theatre group that it would not be granted a licence even though the script was submitted a month before it was scheduled to be staged on 5 August 2006. This particular strategy of informing the theatre group that its licence would be withheld or of objectionable parts of a script just hours before opening night is not, according to practitioners, an uncommon practice by the authorities, leaving directors and scriptwriters little or no opportunity to come up with alternative solutions other than to remove the offending sections completely.

Source: Censorship and Liberalisation in Singapore by Terence Chong. In Space and Polity, Vol. 14, No. 3, 235-250 (Dec 2010).

While the media, as they did with Talaq, viewed it as another case of state censorship:

Singapore has in recent years relaxed censorship regulations for films and plays in an effort to loosen up and market itself as a media and arts center. But controls remain tight.

Source: Singapore pulls play’s license for alleged negative portrayal of Muslims. In Associated Press (5 Aug 2006)., http://bit.ly/2lHzQlM

Playwright Eleanor Wong – whose own play The Campaign To Confer The Public Service Star on JBJ ran into some problems with the MDA at around the same time – says:

As for MDA’s withdrawal of the licence for theatre group Agni Kootthu’s staging of the play Smegma last Friday for being offensive to Muslims, Wong says: “If I had my way, I’d prefer there be no censorship. I’d much rather that the dialogue takes place between the production and its audience.

“If a play like Smegma is seen to be insulting, let it happen with the audience rather than have the censors come in. However, this is the country we live in.”

Everything is politics after all by June Cheong. In The Straits Times (8 Aug 2006).

However, the then 23-year-old actress Dew M Chaiyanara, who was supposed to star in Smegma, was more diplomatic about it:

Dew M. Chaiyanara, 23, an actress in Smegma and a Singapore permanent resident of Thai-Muslim origin, told The Straits Times yesterday she was disappointed that the licence had been withdrawn.

“But I understand that the MDA is just doing its job.”

Licence for controversial play withdrawn by June Cheong. In The Straits Times (5 Aug 2006).

Elangovan himself, meanwhile, told The Straits Times that he was not too affected about the result:

“I’m not cynical about it,” he says. “It is my job as an artist to push the boundaries of what people think is taboo, and to create awareness of the society we live in.”

Source: Playwright back with satirical play by Tara Tan. In The Straits Times (1 Aug 2008).

By Gwen Pew
Published on 16 February 2017

The Vault: Dancing the Good, the Bad and the Ugly is the second of three presentations focusing on local dance-makers’ responses to Singapore play-text. In this edition, contemporary dance artist Lee Mum Wai responds to the themes of social injustice in three banned plays by Elangovan. Presented on 24 February 2017, 8pm at Centre 42 Black Box. Admission is give-what-you-can. Find out more about the event here.

Talaq – which means “divorce” – is a one-woman play about Nisha, a Muslim girl from India who is married off at the age of 16 to a Singaporean man twice her age. She finds out that her husband has been having an affair with another woman. When she confronts him about it, he beats her. The physical, sexual and psychological abuse worsens, but Nisha’s cries for help are drowned out by her husband’s family and relatives, and those within the community.

Production History

Talaq is based on the real-life story of Nargis Banu. Like Nisha in the play, Banu was married off at a young age to a much older man in Singapore and got divorced after suffering abuse. Her attempts to speak out about her experience were silenced by Indian Muslim community leaders. Desperate, she turned to Tamil playwright Elangovan for help to tell her story.

Elangovan, a non-Muslim Tamil, was suspicious when Banu sought him out. His social satires have got him into trouble before, and the award-winning writer wondered if he was being set up for a fall. ‘My first question,’ he says, ‘was: “Why me, a playwright with the adjective controversial attached to my name?”’ But Banu’s palpable desire to get Indian Muslim women to take control of their lives won him over. Besides, he confesses a ‘soft spot for the underdog.’

Source: The Rights of Marriage by Andrea Hamilton. In Asiaweek.com (30 Nov 2000), http://cnn.it/2kCIr8v

The resulting Tamil monologue is based on the stories of Banu and 11 other women, starring Banu. Elangovan personally coached her for three months, and the work debuted on 24 December 1998 at the SPH Auditorium of the Young Musician’s Society Arts Centre. It was sponsored by women’s rights group AWARE and played to a full house. Audience members reacted favourably to the play.

‘This play empowers women,’ says [Constance Singam, president of AWARE]. She saw Talaq in 1998, and recalls how it moved the audience of mainly Indian women to tears. ‘It resonated and had meaning for them.’

However, both Elangovan and Banu received death threats after the performance.

After its debut production, the playwright-director received death threats. Nonetheless, Dr Yaacob Ibrahim, a Member of Parliament who was guest of honour, wrote a letter of commendation. The playwright subsequently secured funding from the Publishing and Translation Grant Scheme of the National Arts Council (NAC) to have the play published in English and Tamil. The play was staged once again in February 1999, this time under the aegis of the Nritalaya Arts Society and received sponsorship from the NAC and the Artsfund.

Source: Interpellation, Ideology and Identity: The Case of Talaq by KK Seet in Theatre Research International Vol. 27 (2002)

In October 2000, theatre company Agni Kootthu [Theatre of Fire] – headed by Elangovan’s wife, S. Thenmoli – attempted to restage the play in in English and Malay for a wider reach. Receiving intense protest from religious groups, the NAC and the Public Entertainment Licensing Unit (PELU) requested that Agni Kootthu first stage a preview for a panel that included representatives from Majlis Ugama Islam Singapura (MUIS) and the South Indian Jamiathul Ulama (SIJU).

After the preview, PELU decided not to grant Talaq a performance license due to strong objections from the religious groups, who felt that Islam had been misportrayed:

In Islamic law, a husband cannot rape his wife as long as the marriage continues. He need not ask permission from his wife for sexual relations each time he wants to have it. Even if she is angry or not in the mood, he has the right to it. In any event, a husband can have sex with his wife without her consent and that will not be rape – Haji Ebrahim Marican, SIJU Secretary

Source: No go for touchy play by Teo Pau Lin. In The Straits Times (27 Oct 2000).

Unable to stage a public performance, Agni Kootthu decided on a closed-door video documentation of the work instead on 28 October 2000. The venue – the Drama Centre at its former location at Fort Canning Park – had already been booked and paid for. In response, the NAC closed the Drama Centre:

Interpreting this as the company’s devious means of contravening and circumventing the licensing restrictions, the NAC decided to close the theatre early.

Source: Interpellation, Ideology and Identity: The Case of Talaq by KK Seet in Theatre Research International Vol. 27 (2002)

When the company tried to continue with the video documentation, a stand-off ensued, and the police were called in to arrest Thenmoli for trespassing. She was released after posting bail.

Reactions

The drama surrounding Talaq in 2000 was viewed in many ways. News outlets tended to frame the situation as a blow to freedom of expression in Singapore:

Singapore’s newfound commitment to artistic freedom is being tested in a battle between a Singaporean playwright and the government over the staging of a play on Muslim women and divorce. This debate over creative license and social responsibility is raging in a country whose history makes it very sensitive to issues of race and religion. The row also comes at a particularly embarrassing time for the Singapore government, which has invested millions of dollars in the last two years to portray itself as Asia’s Renaissance arts city.

Source: Culture-Singapore: Controversial Play Tests Artistic Freedom by Mohan Srilal. In Inter Press Service (7 Nov 2000), http://bit.ly/2kZXgCZ

By blocking the play, officials have let through the conservatives’ message. Whisper the unpalatable truths, don’t say them out loud.

Source: Silenced Cries by Santha Oorjitham. In Asiaweek.com (10 Nov 2000), http://cnn.it/2kCu181

Others saw the ban as a missed opportunity to give voice to marginalised women.

It is therefore, disturbing, that ‘Talaq’, a social commentary on the evils of domestic violence, has been silenced and thus silencing the right of the victims to speak and to be heard. We thought we had moved away from those dark days of silence. This episode serves to remind us that the struggle against violence is an on-going one and that men in power can silence women’s right to speak against oppression by any means within their power. In this case men have used race and religion to silence; the licensing and funding authorities have succumbed to their arguments and banned the play ‘Talaq’.

As a Muslim, my religion is a lifestyle, it affects every aspect of my life… We should not have all these taboo things under the table. Through the artistes’ works, people get a chance to see all these issues. – Roslan Mohd Daud, artistic director of Teater Artistik

The government, on the other hand, saw works like Talaq as a threat to racial and religious harmony:

Singapore encourages artistic expression and creativity. But artistic works must respect religious sensitivities in multi-racial and multi-religious Singapore. Artistes should be mindful of our social realities and avoid creating racial or religious tensions, as they too have a responsible role to play in helping to preserve religious and racial harmony in Singapore. – Assoc. Prof. Ho Peng Kee (Sembawang), Minister of State, Ministry of Law and Ministry of Home Affairs.

Source: Transcript of the Parliamentary Debates (14 Nov 2000), http://bit.ly/2lb2nlG

While disappointed with the outcome, Elangovan certainly did not see the ban as an end to his work as a playwright:

An artiste must understand the politics of existence: learn to walk in the inferno first, get prepared to have stones thrown at you. I think of myself as walking in a minefield, with stones being thrown at me.

Source: Artistic freedom vs social responsibility by Ong Sor Fern. In The Straits Times (1 Nov 2000).

By Gwen Pew
Published on 14 Feb 2017

The Vault: Dancing the Good, the Bad and the Ugly is the second of three presentations focusing on local dance-makers’ responses to Singapore play-text. In this edition, contemporary dance artist Lee Mum Wai responds to the themes of social injustice in three banned plays by Elangovan. Presented on 24 February 2017, 8pm at Centre 42 Black Box. Admission is give-what-you-can. Find out more about the event here.