At the recent Singapore Writers Festival (November 2-11, 2018), a panel of three female writers from different parts of the world discussed a woman’s position in society. It ended up a disorienting presentation of...
Melanie Lee
Melanie Lee
Tsuruko Hanzawa: the Japanese tea ceremony master living like a single flower
It all started with an NHK documentary titled “Tsuruko’s Tea Journey,” a 50-minute program I watched on YouTube one weary evening when I just wanted something frivolous. The documentary followed Tsuruko Hanzawa, a chaji...
Dependence and Disappointment between Mothers and Daughters: Sharlene Teo on her novel Ponti
Sharlene Teo talks about her debut novel Ponti: “I wanted to explore the dependencies and disappointments between mothers and daughters and teenaged best friends.” I almost didn’t read London-based Singaporean author...
Women artists in Singapore: working in and out of the box
Seven Singaporean women from various creative fields tell us what it is like to practice their art in a society that emphasizes efficiency and conformity. While Singapore is better known for its glitzy buildings and...
Review: Margaret Cho in Singapore, ‘This is my sickest show to date’
Cho is hilariously savage and deeply personal in her Asia tour. Margaret Cho enters the stage twerking wildly to a cheering audience. She is decked in black with a spaghetti top that reveals ornate tattoos of peonies...
Singapore Writers Festival Talks Sexuality and Desire in Asian Writing
[agg-ad id=”14519″ align=”left”][agg-ad id=”15486″ align=”center”] I wouldn’t have attended a panel on “Sexuality and Desire in Asian Writing” at this year’s Singapore...