Articles
Image Credit: Ribut (1983)
Explore our repository of articles, essays, reviews and interviews covering a wide range of arts and culture. The majority of these were commissioned and published on the online arts magazine Kakiseni from 2002 – 2010.
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What Is My Culture
Cultural identity formation and national belonging in the contemporary age is complex. Most Chinese who…
Rabbits’ Eyes and Seascapes
On January 28th, 2007, the art world’s luminaries and big-spenders converged on the Kuang estate…
The 60 Second Plug: Ahmad Fuad’s “Dislocated”
Tell us a bit about yourself. I was born 38 years ago in Baling, Kedah.…
Other Than Angkor – Pt. 2
Among the lesser-known temples at Angkor is a pyramidal mass of hewn stone blocks called…
Other Than Angkor – Pt. 1
‘Stung Treng 216 km’ flashed on the blue signboard as our bus sped along the…
The 60 Second Plug: Tourniquet Production’s “Okiku”
Okiku is based on a story from Japanese folklore. Tell us more about the conceptualization…
Enjoy the Silence
The semi-autobiographical domestic drama by Nobel laureate Harold Pinter, Betrayal (staged at the Kuala Lumpur…
Polymathic Spree
A celebrated photographer, filmmaker, writer, and actor (for stage and screen), multi-talented Bernice Chauly is…
Be Heard
In 2001, a group of young Malaysians set up a project to help their fellow…
Telltale Lovebites
It has been an important year for independent Malaysian cinema. Triumph on the international festival…
Roti Bakar With Planta
I don’t bother with film shorts in the States. I think of American shorts as…
The 60 Second Plug: Lapar Lab’s “Five Alone”
Tell us a bit about Five Alone — how was it conceptualised? What can the…
Ladies and Gentlemen
He’s practically done it all: the West End (Miss Saigon, Rent), Hollywood (Anna & The…
X Marks the G-Spot
When can you call yourself a playwright? After a three-act play? After one or two…
The 60 Second Plug: Integrated Expressions’ “Little Mission Impossible”
Little Mission Impossible: should we Expect the Impossible? Tell us more about the musical. Little…
Bootlegging
It would take a very hard-hearted person to not admire the gumption of Khairil M…
Crossing the River
An emerging visual artist whose work has been exhibited both in Malaysia and abroad, Yap…
Anugerah Seni Negara
While most people spent Sunday evening huddled at home, awed by the almighty storm that…
The 60 Second Plug: Sankai Juku’s “Hibiki”
Hibiki is described as a work of “unparalleled simplicity and poetic beauty”. What can you…
The 60 Second Plug: PingStage’s Theatre Carnival — Monodrama 2006
‘Three girls in a play’ is your tagline for the event — sounds naughty. Tell…
Stiff Monster
Watching the KLPac production of Frankenstein in Love, I was somehow reminded of a play…
Stop the Sledgehammers
A nation is as rich as its geography; and geography is enriched when it is…
The 60 Second Plug: The DFP’s KL BBC Proms 2
Tell us about yourself. What inspired you to pick up the baton? The sound of…
Pasar Ramadan
Walking into a Ramadan evening bazaar with a rumbling tummy is almost masochistic. Here you…
The Funky Guru
Finding out about international acts performing live in Malaysia can be a bit like playing…
Shining Through The Rain
Some filmmakers use film as a tool to tell narratives and build worlds. Other filmmakers,…
Free To Speak
Let’s start with a number of disclaimers: first, I’m writing as an individual and not…
Why Care?
Should I be afraid to point a camera at something if it’s wrong? A few…
Lepidopterists – the Musical
Those who are familiar with classical Chinese literature will have heard of Liang Shanbo and…
The 60 Second Plug: The ComeBackKings’ “Free Flow”
Why the ComeBackKings? The first time we performed we were just a bunch of seniors…
Pak Saari Abdullah, 1952 – 2006
I first met Saari when, in early February 1975, I started research work for a…
Listening to Pomeloes
What do the films Lelaki Komunis Terakhir and Gubra have in common? Obvious answer: they…
Drawing Water
An Indonesian artist once pointed out to me the pervasiveness of visual clichés. He said…
Assembling Performance Virgins
Recently we called on Thailand to ask about the coup. From a condo on the…
Race and Place
One should applaud the release of another Malaysian independent feature on local screens – on…
Jack Nathan, 1965 – 2006
Kumaresvara (Jack) Nathan, 360° Head Rotation co-founder, musical collaborator, and my very dear friend of…