Rajendran, Charlene

2024, Rajendran, Charlene, Nah, Dominic, Teo, Daniel, Chong, Gua Khee

2024, Rajendran, Charlene, Lim, How Ngean, Loon, Robin

2024, Rajendran, Charlene

2024, Rajendran, Charlene

(Asian) Dramaturgs’ Network: Sensing, Complexity, Tracing and Doing explores the histories, stories, and practices of the Asian Dramaturgs’ Network (ADN), a network of dramaturgs, performance makers, cultural producers and performance scholars in the wider Asian region that has been active since 2016. It explores two questions that have emerged through ADN dialogues and events. Are there Asian or Asia-based dramaturgies of practice and performance? And how does one write about these within contextually grounded frames, moving beyond Eurocentric paradigms?

In selected essays, extracts from presentations, case studies and critical reflections, the collection explores the story of ADN, and the future of dramaturgy in and for performance in the region. It makes a strong case for rigorous and vibrant dramaturgical thinking, and is an open invitation for further dramaturgical work, opening up sustainable spaces for thinking and doing dramaturgy in the region.

2022, Rajendran, Charlene, Gough, Richard

2020, Rajendran, Charlene, Tan, Marcus Cheng Chye

Examines new and recent Southeast Asian performances and artists Engages specifically with political theatres Expands the discussion around censorship and gender with new and 'inside' perspectives

2022, Busby, Selina, Freebody, Kelly, Rajendran, Charlene

This companion interrogates the relationship between theatre and youth from a global perspective, taking in performances and theatre made by, for, and about young people. These different but interrelated forms of theatre are addressed through four critical themes that underpin the ways in which analysis of contemporary theatre in relation to young people can be framed: political utterances – exploring the varied ways theatre becomes a platform for political utterance as a process of dialogic thinking and critical imagining; critical positioning – examining youth theatre work that navigates the sensitive, dynamic, and complex terrains in which young people live and perform; pedagogic frames – outlining a range of contexts and programmes in which young people learn to make and understand theatre that reflects their artistic capacities and aesthetic strategies; applying performance – discussing a range of projects and companies whose work has been influential in the development of youth theatre within specific contexts. Providing critical, research-informed, and research-based discussions on the intersection between young people, their representation, and their participation in theatre, this is a landmark text for students, scholars, and practitioners whose work and thinking involves theatre and young people.

2022, Rajendran, Charlene

This article considers the value of growing up stories among theatre practitioners in Singapore as a resource for learning theatre in multicultural contexts. It engages with the lived experiences of five Singapore theatre practitioners, Alfian Sa’at, Alvin Tan, Haresh Sharma, Kok Heng Leun and Ong Keng Sen, whose contributions to discourses on multiplicity and performance are significant in the city–state and internationally. Concepts of ‘Open Culture’ (Kuo. 1998. “Contemplating an Open Culture: Transcending Multiracialism.” In Singapore: Re-Engineering Success, edited by Arun Mahiznan, and Lee Tsao Yuan, 55–60. Singapore: Oxford University Press), ‘postcolonial conviviality’ (Gilroy. 2005. Postcolonial Melancholia. New York: Columbia University Press) and ‘critical multiculturalism’ (Goh. 2009. “Conclusion: Toward a Critical Multiculturalism.” In Race and Multiculturalism in Malaysia and Singapore, edited by Daniel P.S. Goh, 213–218. London: Routledge) are proposed as useful frames for understanding theatre in multicultural contexts, and from which the idea of a ‘bricoleur imagination’ is derived.

2023, Rajendran, Charlene

This article examines how Off Centre, a play by Haresh Sharma about mental health in Singapore, first devised and produced by The Necessary Stage (TNS) in 1993, provides a valuable opportunity for audiences to encounter characters labeled “mad” or “off centre” (a colloquial term in Singapore for being mentally ill), who are often looked down upon and relegated to being “useless” in the highly efficient and success-driven urban context of Singapore. It considers how audiences are challenged to respond sensitively and dialogically through a questioning process that builds empathy for persons struggling with mental health. I argue that when Off Centre imbricates the audience in the inner worlds of the characters to dialogue with them, it generates a pedagogical process by creating a space where sensing, listening to and questioning what happens to these characters becomes a way of learning about their battles and beliefs.

2020, Rajendran, Charlene, Wales, Prudence Ellen

Both Sides, Now (BSN), an interdisciplinary arts-based community engagement event produced by arts companies Drama Box and ArtsWok Collaborative, is a complex and dynamic project that engages with end-of-life issues in Singapore. BSN has developed over time to respond more acutely to the particularities of the Singapore context and specific locations. Researching BSN was a challenging yet highly rewarding process but were nonetheless enriched by the opportunity to navigate what this means in analysing the materials. BSN was not just effective in gaining audience interest but continues to gain support from artists, stakeholders and funders keen to sustain arts-based community engagement focusing on end-of-life issues. Most audience members interviewed felt that BSN was beneficial because it generated space for confronting an important issue that was thought-provoking yet playful, and thus non-threatening in its approach. This was seen as a way to improve community connectedness through the opportunity to listen, read and watch others share their perspectives and ideas.