Centre 42 » Aidli ‘Alin’ Mosbit https://centre42.sg Thu, 16 Dec 2021 10:08:35 +0000 en-US hourly 1 https://wordpress.org/?v=4.2.30 In The Living Room: Fundamentally Happy https://centre42.sg/in-the-living-room-fundamentally-happy/ https://centre42.sg/in-the-living-room-fundamentally-happy/#comments Fri, 20 Apr 2018 09:35:31 +0000 http://centre42.sg/?p=9455

The Necessary Stage’s researcher Shawn Chua is joined by Nelson Chia, the director and translator of the 2017 production, Aidli ‘Alin’ Mosbit, who played the character Habiba in the first staging, and theatre researcher Wong Chee Meng. The four discuss the creative processes behind the development of the original play and its Mandarin translation, as well as language and its culture and politics.
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Fundamentally Happy, a story about two former neighbours whose reunion is marred by allegations of sex abuse, was first staged by The Necessary Stage in 2006. In 2017, this award-winning English play by Haresh Sharma receives a Mandarin restaging by Nine Years Theatre.

This Living Room conversation spotlights both versions of Fundamentally Happy, with theatre practitioners and researchers in a discussion of language, changing contexts and more.

Join actress Aidli ‘Alin’ Mosbit (who played the character Habiba in 2006 and 2007), director Nelson Chia (who directed and translated the 2017 Mandarin production), independent theatre researcher Dr. Wong Chee Meng, and The Necessary Stage’s researcher Shawn Chua, as they chat about Fundamentally Happy.

In the Living Room: Fundamentally Happy is held in conjunction with The Studios 2017, presented by Esplanade – Theatres on the Bay.

EVENT DETAILS

Wednesday, 5 April 2017
8pm @ Centre 42 Black Box

Admission price: Give-What-You-Can
Please register here

Aidli MosbitAidli ‘Alin’ Mosbit graduated with a degree in Drama from Queensland University of Technology. Aidli writes, directs, acts, teaches, and designs lighting and costume. She has worked with local theatre companies like The Necessary Stage, W!ld Rice, Teater Ekamatra, and Drama Box. Together with Noor Effendy Ibrahim and Alfian Sa’at, Aidli published an anthology of Malay plays in BISIK. Aidli is the Founder and Director of Panggung ARTS and she is the recipient of the Young Artist Award for Theatre in 2008. Aidli is currently working in Temasek Polytechnic while pursuing her Master of Education.

NelsonNelson Chia is an actor, director and theatre educator. Trained in the Suzuki Method, he has performed on the Singapore stage for over two decades in both English and Mandarin productions. Nelson holds an MA in Directing from Goldsmiths College and has directed over 25 major productions. He is best known for his translation, adaptation and direction of old and contemporary classics in Mandarin. Nelson previously headed the Department of Theatre at the Nanyang Academy of Fine Arts, and lectured at LASALLE College of the Arts and the Theatre Studies Programme at the National University of Singapore. In 2012, Nelson co-founded Nine Years Theatre (NYT) with his wife Mia Chee. NYT strives to raise the profile of Mandarin theatre among Singapore audiences. In 2013, Nelson created the NYT Ensemble, a first of its kind in Singapore, to have a group of actors who train and create work together over an extended period of time.

Chee MengWong Chee Meng is an independent researcher and theatre reviewer with particular interest in intercultural theatre. He has previously worked as a translator, a bilingual journalist and an arts manager in the performing arts. Apart from a bachelor’s degree in linguistics and Chinese studies from the National University of Singapore, he holds a Masters and a PhD degree in heritage studies from the Brandenburg University of Technology Cottbus in Germany. His doctoral thesis was on performance and intercultural dialogue. He has lectured in Chinese film studies as a postdoctoral fellow in literary and cultural studies with the Nanyang Technological University.

Moderator:

ShawnShawn Chua is a researcher at The Necessary Stage. He holds an MA in Performance Studies from Tisch School of the Arts, New York University, and is a recipient of the National Arts Council’s Art Scholarship (Postgraduate).

On 5th April 2017, we held a Living Room session in conjunction with the Esplanade Presents: The Studios 2017 series. This Living Room conversation spotlights HARESH SHARMA’s “Fundamentally Happy”, both the original 2006 staging and the 2017 Mandarin adaptation by 九年剧场 Nine Years Theatre. Hosted by The Necessary Stage’s researcher Shawn Chua Ming Ren, the discussion on language and cultural contexts tapped into the memories and experiences of actress Aidli Mosbit (who played the character Habiba in 2006 and 2007), director Nelson Chia (who directed and translated the recent Mandarin production), independent theatre researcher Dr. Wong Chee Meng (who had watched both versions and wrote about the earlier staging).

Source: Centre 42 Facebook

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The Living Room is a programme by Centre 42 that welcomes chat and conversation. Through focused but casual dialogues and face-to-face exchanges, this programme encourages participants to re-examine trends, happenings, people (on & off-stage) and phenomena in Singapore theatre.

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Alfian Sa’at In The Living Room: New Directions in Malay Theatre https://centre42.sg/alfian-saat-in-the-living-room-new-directions-in-malay-theatre/ https://centre42.sg/alfian-saat-in-the-living-room-new-directions-in-malay-theatre/#comments Fri, 20 Apr 2018 08:38:15 +0000 http://centre42.sg/?p=9444

Singaporean playwright Alfian Sa’at sits down with a panel of fellow Malay playwrights  – Aidli ‘Alin’ Mosbit, Irfan Kasban, Nabilah Said, and Nessa Anwar – to discuss the state of Malay Theatre in Singapore, where it came from, how it is currently, and where it will head to in future. The 110-minute Living Room Chat has been repackaged into a 2-part video recording.
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Over the past decade, a new crop of Malay playwrights has emerged, making their mark on Malay Theatre. Works from these theatremakers raise interesting questions about the state of Malay Theatre in Singapore.

Is Malay Theatre defined purely by language? What are the politics and aesthetics of Malay Theatre? Is it situated at a margin to mainstream English Theatre, and how does this marginality shape production? Given the widespread use of surtitling, are those works still primarily written to address a Malay audience? And are there certain taboos that exist because of religious sensitivities and ‘community standards’?

Join Alfian Sa’at and a panel of fellow Malay playwrights – Aidli ‘Alin’ Mosbit, Irfan Kasban, Nabilah Said, and Nessa Anwar – in our Living Room as they explore the issues they grapple with in their works.

EVENT DETAILS

Thursday, 24 November 2016
8pm @ Centre 42 Black Box

Admission is free by registration

The Living Room is conducted in Malay and English.

Alfian Sa'atAlfian Sa’at is well-known for frank, insightful, and provocative literary and dramatic works, written in English and Malay. As the Resident Playwright of W!ld Rice, he has written acclaimed plays such as the Asian Boys trilogy (2000, 2004, 2007), Cooling-Off Day (2011), and the historical epic Hotel (2015, co-writer). Alfian is also an author with published collections of short stories and poems. He is a four-time winner of Best Original Script at the annual M1-The Straits Times Life Theatre Awards and a 2001 recipient of the National Arts Council’s Young Artist Award for Literature.

Aidli MosbitAidli ‘Alin’ Mosbit graduated with a degree in Drama from Queensland University of Technology. Aidli writes, directs, acts, teaches, and designs lighting and costume. She has worked with local theatre companies like The Necessary Stage, W!ld Rice, Teater Ekamatra, and Drama Box. Together with Noor Effendy Ibrahim and Alfian Sa’at, Aidli published an anthology of Malay plays in BISIK. Aidli is the Founder and Director of Panggung ARTS and she is the recipient of the Young Artist Award for Theatre in 2008. Aidli is currently working in Temasek Polytechnic while pursuing her Master of Education.

Irfan KasbanIrfan Kasban is a freelance theatre maker who writes, directs, designs and, at times, performs. The former Associate Artistic Director of Teater Ekamatra attended the prestigious La MaMa Umbria International Symposium for Directors 2012, and have written and directed several works. These include Hantaran Buat Mangsa Lupa (M1 Fringe Festival 2012), 94:05 (Kakiseni Festival 2013), ANA (Projek Suitcase 2015), and Trees a Crowd (Twenty Something Festival 2016). Last year Irfan’s play TAHAN (2012), was selected for Esplanade’s Fifty – a celebration of Singapore’s seminal works.

Nabilah SaidNabilah Said discovered the world of theatre in 2010. She is currently in Boiler Room, a programme for playwrights by Centre 42, and is this year’s resident artist for contemporary Malay theatre company Teater Ekamatra. She presented the short plays Tart (2015), Next Station (2014) and Lost (2012) as part of Teater Ekamatra’s playwright mentorship programme after undergoing a year’s training in its youth wing, Mereka. She is an arts and lifestyle journalist with The Straits Times, and also a freelance writer, editor and poet with works published in anthologies by Math Paper Press.

Nessa AnwarNessa Anwar has written, acted, produced and directed for theatre, television, digital content and short films. Currently a multimedia journalist by day, she believes wholeheartedly in the content she creates. Nessa began acting first, under companies like Singapore Repertory Theatre’s Young Company and Teater Ekamatra. Nessa also wrote and acted in a play commissioned for a Singapore Writer’s Festival Checkpoint Theatre 2015 event entitled Riders Know When It’s Going to Rain, which was restaged for the 2016 Singapore Theatre Festival under W!ld Rice.

Part 1: Alfian Sa’at in the Living Room: New Directions in Malay Theatre

Aidli ‘Alin’ Mosbit, Irfan Kasban, Nabilah Said and Nessa Anwar each shares his or her personal history in Malay Theatre, collectively constructing a ground-up account of Malay Theatre history.

Part 2: Alfian Sa’at in the Living Room: New Directions in Malay Theatre

The playwrights discuss several important topics in Malay Theatre, as well as field questions from the audience.

In a Living Room session on 24 Nov 2016, Alfian Sa’at sat down with fellow playwrights Aidli ‘Alin’ Mosbit, Irfan Kasban, Nabilah Said and Nessa Anwar to discuss the state of Malay Theatre in Singapore and where it is heading to. The group tackled questions such as: What makes a play a “Malay” play? Are you more comfortable writing in Malay or English? Do you feel pressure to portray the Malay community in a certain way? Are you writing for a Malay audience? What is the future of Malay Theatre? etc. Photo Credit: Lu Yixin

Source: Centre 42 Facebook

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The Living Room is a programme by Centre 42 that welcomes chat and conversation. Through focused but casual dialogues and face-to-face exchanges, this programme encourages participants to re-examine trends, happenings, people (on & off-stage) and phenomena in Singapore theatre.

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