Ready for a new season of theatrical magic? Wild Rice has just announced their first three shows to kick off the new year with a bang. A spectacular line-up of unforgettable classics, theatre fans and arts aficionados can look forward to the staging of An Inspector Calls, The Butterfly Lovers, and HOTEL.
A thought-provoking twist on the murder mystery genre, J.B. Priestley’s An Inspector Calls takes audiences into the heart of a seemingly happy, middle-class family whose lives are upended when an Inspector arrives with news of the death of a young woman. Brought to life by director Glen Goei, murder, morality, class, and conscience clash in a riveting thriller.
Next up is the world’s first English-language opera adaptation of The Butterfly Lovers, a timeless Chinese folklore. Following a successful, critically acclaimed world premiere in Australia earlier this year, The Butterfly Lovers is now set to stage in Singapore. Putting a fresh spin on the tale of Liang Shanbo and Zhu Yingtai – who cross paths at school after the latter disguises herself as a man in order to pursue higher education within a rigidly patriarchal society – Wild Rice’s Founding Artistic Director Ivan Heng infuses his visionary flair alongside a sensational new score by Richard Mills, Artistic Director of Victorian Opera and one of Australia’s most distinguished composers, and a soul-stirring libretto by Joel Tan.
First staged in 2015 at the Singapore International Festival of Arts, HOTEL swept the Straits Times Life! Theatre Awards for Production of the Year, Best Direction, Best Original Script, and Best Ensemble, before following up with a headlining production at the OzAsia Festival in Adelaide. The immersive epic unfolds in a performance that spans almost five hours and in nine languages, as the audience traverse a century of social and political change through generations of residents, travellers, guests, and staff at an iconic hotel in Singapore. Written by Alfian Sa’at and Marcia Vanderstraaten, and directed by Ivan Heng and Glen Goei, this fully homegrown play explores history and identity amidst collisions between the old and new.
Don’t miss out on the epic season. Grab your tickets or find out more on Wild Rice’s website here.
