Studio A | SIFA-X 2023

Responding to the rich layers of ambivalence and irony in Arthur Yap's poem "there is no future in nostalgia," the four residents of Centre 42's Playwright's Professional Development Residency present dramatized readings of new short plays that reflect on the tensions between technocratic and civic visions of life in Singapore.

Studio A features the works of Ahmad Musta'ain and Danial Matin:

The Best of Us by Ahmad Musta'ain

Khairul and Taj mysteriously make their way into Juweeta’s life one last time with hopes of trying to save her. Together, the three friends embark on a journey of nostalgia, where they learn new ways on how to understand their old stories

Asymptote by Danial Matin

We gaze back at the past with fondness but forget that, sometimes, the past gazed back at us with apprehension. Or aspiration. With crossed-eyes, we gaze backwards and forwards in an eternal pursuit of the ever elusive, only to realise near the end that everything tends towards… nothing. Is our longing, both for what could be and what could have been, perhaps misplaced? Nothing stops time, and yet, nothing has stopped us from trying.

Two performances only: Sat 20 May, 3pm and Sun 21 May, 8pm

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Studio B features the works of A Yagnya and Rachel Chin:

Help! Our Dead have Dementia and Other Stories by A Yagnya

A tale of lost land, receding memories, forgotten tongues and jumbled histories. In a country that grows louder and louder with the sound of constant demolition and construction, what’s a (BTO searching, newly independent) grandchild to do when their (long) dead grandparent resurfaces out of the nationwide renovation dust, making (seemingly) unreasonable demands and- is that an imaginary language?

Where the Hantus At? by Rachel Chin

Modernity comes at a cost. What happens when you sacrifice history and the past at the altar of progress?When their father passes, two sisters must decide what to do with his estate: to preserve what is there, or to sell their house and move on. Both refuse to compromise, and in this battle of wills, the dead get involved. Every love story is a ghost story, and every ghost is a memory.

Two performances only: Sat 27 May, 3pm and Sun 28 May, 8pm. Click here to buy tickets to Studio B.

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Studio is part of Centre 42's group show SIFA-X: there is no future in nostalgia, in collaboration with Singapore International Festival of Arts.

Check out the other performances presented in this group show at www.centre42.sg, or follow us on Facebook/Instagram/Telegram: @centre42