Now that local theatre company Wild Rice has opened their new Ngee Ann Kongsi Theatre at the revamped Funan, which occupies a whopping 20,000 sq ft that seats 358, it’s time to welcome theatre-goers into the space that proudly displays Singapore’s first thrust stage. And what better way to celebrate the opening of a three-floor performing arts complex than with a complete production season featuring homegrown works?
Following some cancellations of shows and construction delays, the theatre has since successfully launched on Aug 8 with Thomas Lim’s award-winning play, Supervision. Now, catch four local plays including the Stella Kon classic, Emily of Emerald Hill, during Wild Rice @ Funan’s grand opening season, happening from Sep-Dec 2019.
Emily of Emerald Hill
The first-ever play staged by Wild Rice, Emily of Emerald Hill will commemorate the opening of the theatre’s new home by being the first of the four to premiere this grand opening season. Starring Singaporean actor Ivan Heng as Emily Gan and directed by celebrated director Glen Oei, revisit the golden age of Singapore through iconic character Emily, an abandoned girl who defeats all odds and rises to the top, becoming the matriarch of a prominent Peranakan household. Opens Sep 4
Merdeka
A provocative new play that examines our country’s colonial legacy amid the Singapore Bicentennial celebrations, Merdeka raises a highly-important question: “Why celebrate the beginning of colonialism rather than its end?” Watch a group of youths named “Raffles Must Fall” survey texts, artefacts and reenact scenes from the past to better understand and confront colonialism. Opens Oct 10
Fair Play
Presented by Wild Rice’s Theatre-In-Education programme, Fair Play is a comedy that’s both insightful and challenging. In this piece, Boy and Girl are assigned scripts by a playwright, to rehearse for lives they will lead when introduced to our present world. But as they begin to do so, they are puzzled by the many idiosyncratic ways of our world, such as gender norms, roles and other odds and ends. Opens Oct 17
Peter Pan in Serangoon Gardens
Shaping up to be a Wild Rice Christmas/E-O-Y production, Peter Pan in Serangoon Gardens is a brand new musical that reimagines the beloved fairytale of Peter Pan, Singaporean-style. As Wendy and her brothers face the many pressures that plague local pre-teens, the delightful Boy Who Wouldn’t Grow Up enters, whisking them away on an eventful journey to Neverland and promises many adventures alongside Ting Tong Bell and her fairy friends, as well as the Lost Boys. Opens Nov 21
Wild Rice @ Funan’s grand opening season will run from Sep-Dec 2019. More information here.
