The Necessary Stage: Effective Use of Community Theatre

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Alvin Tan will share his experiences on the effective use of community theatre. He will discuss The Necessary Stage’s devising and collaborative methodology, using some plays to illustrate how The Necessary Stage negotiates multiple cultural sensibilities, and the need to educate themselves before embarking on the artistic journey of theatre-making.

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One of the plays include Off Centre, a play on mental illness and the field research conducted during the process of creating the work. Another play, Completely With/Out Character, is about Paddy Chew, the first Singaporean who came out with his HIV status. Paddy had approached The Necessary Stage to create a play about living with HIV in Singapore, and it took a year to interview and prepare him for the stage.

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Other international collaborations such as Mobile 1 and Mobile 2: Flat Cities, involve multiple partners from Japan, Thailand and the Philippines, showcases The Necessary Stage’s application of an intercultural approach that has its genesis from working in multicultural Singapore for twenty-seven years.

Author Bio

Alvin Tan is the Founder and Artistic Director of The Necessary Stage since 1987. One of the leading proponents of devising theatre in Singapore, Alvin has directed more than 70 plays which have been staged locally and at international festivals. He has been awarded a Fulbright Scholarship and in 1998, was conferred the Young Artist Award for theatre. Alvin has also served as a member of the curatorial panel for TransLab, an initiative created by the Australian Council for the Arts to promote intercultural theatre and performance. Alvin was awarded Best Director at the 2011 Life! Theatre Awards for Model Citizens by The Necessary Stage. In 2010, Alvin was conferred the Chevalier des Arts et des Lettres by the French Ministry of Culture, in recognition of his significant contribution to the arts. Most recently in 2014, Alvin was conferred the Cultural Medallion for his artistic excellence as well as contribution and commitment to the arts, which have enriched and made a distinction to Singapore’s arts and cultural landscape.

Alvin sits on the Singapore50 Committee, established to coordinate nationwide celebrations for Singapore's 50th birthday in 2015. Alvin is also a Board Member the National Arts Council, Singapore (from 1 September 2013 – 31 August 2015). Most recently in 2014, Alvin was invited to be on the Syllabus Development Committee for the Arts Education branch of Ministry of Education, to design a drama syllabus at 'O' level for implementation in 2017 in schools.