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Margaret Chan as Emily of Emily Hill
Image courtesy of Edmund Low |
Venue: NUS Baba House
Set in the 1950s,
Emily of Emerald Hill is a
one-woman play chronicling the life of a nonya Emily Gan, and her struggles with
patriarchy and the hierarchy among the womenfolk in her in-law’s household.
In her youth, she became aware of the expectations that
society had of a woman. Using her wits, she
made herself an indispensable member of the family, and in the process gained influence and dominance over the others. A shadow was cast on these triumphs
with her estrangement from her husband and the loss of her son.
This powerful play revolves around the triumphs and tragedies
of a strong willed Peranakan woman who tried to improve her position in life against
a backdrop of demands and expectations defined by gender. Is Emily’s life still
played out in today’s households? Join panelists
Deborah Tan, Kelly Reedy, Tan Dan Feng and Stella Kon for a lively discussion
on Emily as a representation of the 21st century Asian woman.
Panellists
Deborah Tan is a Secondary 3 student of
Singapore Chinese Girls' School. She is currently the Chairperson of the Girls'
Brigade Company in SCGS and is member of several other leadership groups. In
2013, she was the chairperson of the Open Little Eyes Conference, targeted at
educating primary school students on world issues, in order to create change,
which she is passionate about. She enjoys expressing herself through writing
and curling up with a good book.
Artist Kelly Reedy has lived in Southeast Asia for over 15 years. Her work
has been influenced by the abstract qualities of Asian folk traditions and the
rich symbolism embedded in its mythologies. She has researched the ritual uses
of paper across Asia as well as other traditional arts, leading her to
incorporate natural dyes, fabric and handmade paper into her mixed media artworks.
Kelly has exhibited internationally in Berlin, Paris and Chicago, as well as
locally at the Jendela Visual Arts Space, Esplanade, the Singapore Tyler Print
Institute, Alliance Franç
aise and Sculpture Square.
Tan Dan Feng is the director of Select Books and a linguist and technologist. His public
service roles include serving on the National Translation Committee, Television
and Radio Advisory Committee Panel of Experts, the Cultural Medallion Award
Specialist Panel, amongst others. Dan Feng also chairs the annual Singapore
International Translation Symposium. Books that he has edited include Singapore Shifting Boundaries (2011), Indonesia Rising: Islam, Democracy and the
Rise of Indonesia as a Major Power (2009) and The Chinese in Indonesia (2008). He is currently working on a
translation of a major work on Singapore's intellectual history, focusing on
Khoo Seok Wan, Lim Boon Keng and Song Ong Siang.
Playwright Stella Kon grew up in an old mansion in Emerald Hill Road, and is
descended from two old Peranakan families. She has been writing about Singapore
all her life. In the 1980's she was a three-times winner of the National
Playwriting Competition; one of these plays was Emily of Emerald Hill. Stella
now prefers writing musicals to stage plays. She is the Chairperson of arts
charity Musical Theatre Live!, which helps create original works of musical
theatre. Her most recent work, Emily the Musical, will be
seen in Nov 2015.
About the Heritage Community Series
Encouraged by the growing community of
Singaporeans actively committed to exploring history and raising cultural
awareness, the Heritage Community Series is introduced as a platform where
independent researchers, heritage enthusiasts and collectors share their encounters,
perspectives and experiences.
Look out for our
upcoming talks in the Heritage Community Series
Wednesday, 24
September 2014 - Decorative Art
Nouveau Tiles: Luxuriant Flowers and Other
Forms
Friday, 3 October 2014 - Demystifying Chinese Portraits
Wednesday, 15 October 2014 - A Heavenly Offering
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