young & W!ld, a division of W!ld Rice presents Swordfish + Concubine: The Fall of Singapura. This darkly funny, yet bitingly relevant play casts new light on the oldest legends in Singapore, from the slaughtered boy whose unjustly spilled blood stained our soil red to the sultan's concubine whose wrongful death damned the kingdom.

First premiered at the OCBC Singapore Theatre Festival 2008, Kee Thuan Chye's satire is now boldly re-imagined by a new generation of actors. Committed to training and nurturing Singapore's most promising young talents, young & W!ld presents in this play 7 young actors who take on a seemingly endless array of roles as they breathe life into a Singapura you've never imagined.

Directed by Jonathan Lim

Written by Kee Thuan Chye

Music by Bang Wenfu

Set design by Pebble Tan

Lighting design by Adrian Tan



Starring

Adi Jamaludin, Faizal Abdullah, Johannes Hadi, Kamal Abdul Rahim, Grace Khoo, Yin Mei J J Lenden-Hitchcock, Elizabeth Loh.

Press Release

After their success in Leow Puay Tin's Family and Edward Albee's Unlike Some People, the second batch of young & W!LD is proud to present their 3rd and final production, Swordfish + Concubine:  The Fall of Singapura, written by Malaysian playwright Kee Thuan Chye and directed by Jonathan Lim.  

 

In early Singapura, the people wondered whether to stay or to leave.

In early Singapura, the rulers would remake the rules to suit their needs.

In early Singapura, those who dared to question were snuffed out.

Thank goodness it's all changed.  

The second batch of young & W!LD presents a powerfully imaginative, bitingly relevant and darkly funny play that casts new light on our oldest tales! Leaping from the pages of the Sejarah Melayu (Malay Annals), history and myth intertwine in this strange yet familiar world of covenants and curses, tyrants and todak (swordfish). From the slaughtered boy whose unjustly spilled blood stained our soil red to the sultan's concubine whose wrongful death damned the kingdom - come re-encounter the legends of a younger and wilder Singapore.       

First premiered at the OCBC Singapore Theatre Festival 2008, Kee Thuan Chye's incisive and witty satire is now bodly re-imagines by a new generation of actors in this hard-hitting, rapid-flowing and highly-physical production of thrilling transformations. Watch 7 actors take on a seemingly endless array of roles as they breathe life into a Singapura you've never imagines!  

One saviour.

One martyr.

One traitor.

One Singapura.

 

 

About The Legends  

Swordfish + Concubine" The Fall of Singapura unravels two tales from the Sejarah Melayu (Malay Annals). The better-known one is the legendary tale of Hang Nadim, the wise kampung boy who boldly speaks up and saves the kingdom from a bloody swordfish attack but ends up being executed as a threat to political stability. Legend has it that it is his unjustly spilled blood that stained the soil of Bukit Merah red.

The tale of the concubine begins with a covenant made between Sang Nila Utama and Demang Lebar Daun the chief of Palembang ­‐ binding Singapura's future rulers and subjects in a relationship of mutual respect. Generations later, the concubine Nurhalisa is falsely accused & summarily executed. This shameful act breaks the convenant and unleashes a curse upon Singapura - the kingdom is invaded and conquered by the Majapahit.

These tales are an integral part of Singapura's heritage - both as part of our legendary past, and also as a vivid reminder of how rulers and citizens should honour each other.

About The Production

As the new generation of Singapore's theatre scene, the seven young & W!ld members are eager to use these tales to articulate their hopes (and concerns) regarding the Singapore they will inherit.

"There is a palpable energy and inventiveness in their emsemble work..." The Starits Times Life!

young & W!ld has also always been known for their ensemble work, the previous batch having won Best Ensemble in the 2008 LIFE Theatre Awards and gaining another nomination in 2009. The second batch continued that tradition by playing all the members of a Hokkien family over 3 generations, across culture, gender, age and race, in Family. Now they tackle even more characters, and at a rapid-fire pace, to bring to life the violence, passion and politics of early Singapura.

About young & W!ld

young & W!ld is a division of W!ld Rice committed to training and nurturing Singapore's most promising young talents. This innovative actor-training programme aims to prepare the next generation of actors for the professional theatre scene.

In addition to practical training that emphasises versatility, dedication, discipline and a deeper understanding of all aspects of theatre-making, the young & W!ld philosophy also stresses the role that actors (and theatre) play in shaping our society. The young & W!ld actors learn that as artists, they have a responsibility to the audience and wider public - to illuminate, to educate, to communicate; and to always share in the common experience.

W!ld Rice is proud to invest in the future of Singapore theatre by playing its part in developing our next generation of multi-skilled, socially-aware and creatively-versatile theatre practitioners.