Visiting the set of Sisters of the Night was a slightly unnerving experience. It’s a painstakingly detailed recreation of a 1920s Japanese brothel in Singapore, down to the yellowing of the shoji (sliding doors or windows with wooden frames covered with translucent paper), antique sex toys, and the flickering of “candlelight” in each room.
Possibly one of the most striking areas laid just beyond the entrance, where the double doors opened to reveal what looked like a cage with wooden bars. We learned that it was where young women would stand to entice customers as they entered.
Inside were private rooms furnished with all the necessary comforts of that time, including futon, lamps and small vanity items. There was even a private space akin to a break room where the girls were able to relax and be themselves, away from the prying eyes of their customers.
We knew that these were just part of a specially designed set (located in a nondescript building at Admiralty), yet could not shake off the realisation that places like these once existed in pre-war Singapore, a time where women had to fight extra hard to have their voices heard.
“There were about 400 to 500 brothels, out of which one quarter was Japanese,” explains Jean Yeo, CEO of Ochre Pictures and executive producer of the series. Her research puts the number of Japanese brothels during this era at around 109.
But Sisters of the Night is more than just a period drama. “It’s about resilience and rising above your circumstances,” says Yeo. The highly anticipated Mediacorp drama, which is produced by Ochre Pictures, is the prequel to the award-winning series Last Madame starring Joanne Peh, Fiona Fussi and Jeff Chou.
Fans of the 2019 series will recall Peh as Fung Lan, a “ruthless and cold-hearted” mama-san at the top brothel in town, the House of Phoenix. Set in 1940s Singapore, viewers learned that she had fled from her well-to-do family to avoid an arranged marriage and, despite becoming a prostitute, managed to take charge of her life. Playing alongside Peh was Lina Ng as Ah Yoke, her loyal majie (domestic helper).
Their stories were something worth exploring, according to Yeo. “When I finished writing the [Last Madame] script, I always thought that there was a very good origin story for both girls,” she says. Another reason for the series was that the audience loved the characters. She reveals that Mediacorp did a focus group with five different age groups of viewers, and most wanted to see a prequel.
The story delves into the parallel stories of the young Fung Lan (played by Fang Rong) and Nozomi (who eventually becomes Ah Yoke, played by Gini Chang). One is running away from her life of oppressive luxury, while another is escaping the abject poverty of Japan.
The two become friends through shared tragedy, and despite the direst of circumstances they have been put in, both rise above all to eventually become the beloved characters seen in Last Madame.
If Last Madame was an edgy drama that did not shy away from physical violence and nudity (such as the much-talked-about sex scene of Peh and co-star Jeff Chou), then expect Sisters of the Night to continue in a similar vein.
“I’m female. I’m a mother, I don’t like to do gratuitous stuff. But this, you need to portray the grit, the violence,” Yeo explains. “It was actually a lot more violent than whatever we portrayed, because it was a time where girls were treated as objects. They really were, like, rubbish. It was necessary to convey the mood, culture and attitudes towards women of the time.”
What does she want audiences to take away from the show? “I think it’s relevant to all of us, specifically to females. These women went through so much, and the fact that Fung Lan and Nozomi can rise above the circumstances, and beat the men at their own game,” she says.
Yeo adds that this is a part of our history that is not talked about and not shown, and is something few people know about. “For me, it’s just fascinating to unearth this for our viewers.”
Sisters of the Night debuts on meWATCH on Jul 13 and on Mediacorp’s YouTube drama channel on Jul 20.
Watch out for our interviews with the leading ladies, Fang Rong and Gini Chang, closer to the premiere date.
