Thursday 21 November, 7.30pm: This Bird Does Not Exist by Shawn Chua & Brown-er Face by Alia Alkaff
Friday 22 November, 7.30pm: Syurga itu Cinta [Just like Heaven] by Wan Nur Syafiqa Binte Syed Yusoff & [Kathi]: How to Dispose a Body in 60 Minutes by Melizarani T. Selva
Saturday 23 November, 2.30pm: Good Grief by Sarah Zafirah Bte Noor Ashikin and Talking to My Grandfather About Love by Edward Eng
Saturday 23 November, 7.30pm: 82 by Sindhura Kalidas & Interlude by Rachael Ng
Sunday 24 November, 2.30pm: Stuffed with Feelings by Angela Kong & The Union by Jovan Ang
The Necessary Stage’s (TNS) wildly popular Playwrights’ Cove is back in 2024! 10 budding playwrights have undergone training and mentorship with Cultural Medallion recipient and TNS Resident Playwright Haresh Sharma over a six-month period, and are now ready to share the fruits of their labour with a public audience.
Over five performances from 21 to 24 November, the playwrights will present their newly developed works-in-progress via dramatised readings featuring a host of theatre actors, directed by veteran and emerging Singapore directors. Each performance will feature two different works to the public, followed by a post-show dialogue with the playwrights, facilitated by Haresh Sharma.
The schedule of Playwrights’ Cove 2024 is as follows:
Thursday 21 November, 7.30pm: This Bird Does Not Exist by Shawn Chua & Brown-er Face by Alia Alkaff
This Bird Does Not Exist by Shawn Chua
Directed by Adib Kosnan
Read by Jamil Schulze, Krish Natarajan, and Ants Chua
In a future where birds have gone extinct, the bird park has become a refuge for humans. A performing ensemble known as the Endlings gather to perform a remembrance ceremony, keeping alive the memory of birds through song and ritual.
Brown-Er Face by Alia Alkaff
Directed by Lim Shien Hian
Read by Shivaane S, Kysha Ashreen Amir Singh, Elle Cheng, Audrey Teong, Jovan Ang, and Benjamin Koh
Shivaani, a young budding writer, dreams of finding her voice and her purpose as a storyteller. She believes in writing what you know - using life experience to inform your writing. However, she didn’t expect her life story to include her best friend showing up to her party in brown face… and her boyfriend “telling” her story for her.
What stories can and should we tell? And will this one end in forgiveness?
Friday 22 November, 2.30pm: Syurga itu Cinta [Just like Heaven] by Wan Nur Syafiqa & [Kathi]: How to Dispose a Body in 60 Minutes by Melizarani T. Selva
Syurga itu Cinta [Just like Heaven] by Wan Nur Syafiqa
Directed by Serena Ho
Read by Rusydina Afiqah, Dwayne Ng, Dalifah Shahril, Fazli Ahmad, Lok Meng Chue, Julius Foo, Tejas Hirah, and Hamidah Abdul Rahim
Performed in English and Malay
When Melur takes a liking to her ‘work husband’, Nic, she decides to take supernatural measures to secure the man of her dreams. Would their families approve of this budding relationship, or would something else get in the way?
[Kathi]: How to Dispose a Body in 60 Minutes by Melizarani T. Selva
Directed by Adib Kosnan
Read by Jean Ng, Moli Mohter, and Charlene Rajendran
Performed in English and Malay
It is 4.30am on a Tuesday morning at Tekka Market. Three women gather to dispose of a dead body. They have 60 minutes to figure out the best strategy to execute, before dawn breaks, before the Sembcorp trucks arrive, before daylight hits their shadowy quest to free themselves from the practices and perspectives that subdue them. This play seeks to unravel the roles we inherit, rituals that shackle us and the aching desire to shed all that no longer serve us.
Saturday 23 November, 2.30pm: Good Grief by Sarah Zafirah Bte Noor Ashikin and Talking to My Grandfather About Love by Edward Eng
Good Grief by Sarah Zafirah Bte Noor Ashikin
Directed by Rodney Oliveiro
Read by Alia Alkaff, Farah Haja N, Yami Yunus, Farah Ong, and Jada
When Nadia flies back to visit home after news of her younger sister Diana’s death, she discovers that Diana has become a ghost. Over the next few days, as Nadia tries to get rid of Diana, she encounters old friends, a witch doctor, and a talking cat, eventually questioning whether she really wants to say goodbye to her sister forever.
Talking to My Grandfather About Love by Edward Eng
Directed by Lim Shien Hian
Read by Ching Shu Yi
In Talking to My Grandfather About Love, the actor tells a story for the first time. It is the story of the protagonist's grandfather, who worked in a hotel and could apparently talk to the dead. On another level, it is a rumination about theatre, spiritual experiences, and the hidden lives of our family members.
Saturday 23 November, 7.30pm: 82 by Sindhura Kalidas & Interlude by Rachael Ng
82 by Sindhura Kalidas
Directed by Rodney Oliveiro
Read by Padma Krishnan, Raguvvaran Naidu, Ruby Jayaseelan, Julius Foo, and Grace Kalaiselvi
Meet Yuva. He feels trapped in a life filled with regret and grief. Torn between caring for his ailing mother and grappling with the unresolved pain of his father’s death, he despises his neighbourhood, which constantly reminds him of what he has lost, and what could have been. Even a budding relationship with Sandhya cannot shake his reliance on alcohol as a crutch.
82 unfolds entirely within Yuva’s neighbourhood, where a chorus of chatty Uncles and Aunties offer unsolicited advice and a talking dragon acts as his sole confidante.
82 explores Yuva’s coming to terms with life and death in a world that does not always feel like it has your back.
Interlude by Rachael Ng
Directed by Serena Ho
Read by Julius Foo, Serene Chen, and Deonn Yang
One hour before her 50th birthday, a woman finds herself outside a budget hotel, alone and unsettled.
In the dead of night, a young man, who has felt empty for most of his life, checks in an unexpected guest.
Seemingly suspended in time, their encounter forces them to confront all the ways we remember and misremember, and all the ways our memory disarms and deceives us
Sunday 24 November, 2.30pm: Stuffed with Feelings by Angela Kong & The Union by Jovan Ang
Stuffed With Feelings by Angela Kong
Directed by A Yagnya
Read by Cheryl Lee, Gloria Tan, Nicholas Bloodworth, Yulin Ng, and Lim Kay Siu
After struggling to complete her assignments in school, 10 year old Emily gets diagnosed with ADHD. Through the help of Sharity the Elephant, she learns to cope and embrace her neurodiversity.
The Union by Jovan Ang
Directed by Lim Shien Hian
Read by Ching Shu Yi, Reginal Allyn, Eric Larrea, Uday Duggal, Timothy Yeo, and Misha Paule Tan
In 1957, an untimely murder marks the beginning of the end for an emerging anti-colonial movement—the Union for Singaporean Independence (USI). The victim? Its leader, ex-police officer Sophia. The suspects? Sophia’s three closest allies. The weapon? Her own gun.
As police detective Elizabeth Scott investigates the case, she is thrust into a sprawling web of conspiracy; and underneath it all a disturbing revelation.
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All information is correct at time of publishing but may be subject to change without prior notice.
The Organiser reserves the right the amend the above without prior notice. In the event of any dispute, the Organiser’s decision is final.
Established in 1987, The Necessary Stage (TNS) is a non-profit theatre company with charity status. Our mission is to create challenging, indigenous and innovative theatre that touches the heart and mind. TNS has the honour of being the only arts company in Singapore helmed by two Cultural Medallion recipients: Artistic Director and Founder Alvin Tan and Resident Playwright Haresh Sharma. The company is also the organiser and curator of the annual M1 Singapore Fringe Festival.
TNS is supported by the National Arts Council under the Major Company Scheme for the period from 1 April 2023 to 31 March 2026.
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