Umbilical
SIFA 2025
Commissioned by Singapore International Festival of Arts
16 - 18 May
SOTA Studio Theatre
Creating a collaborative work is always a challenge—it often feels like navigating through the dark. Yet, it is precisely this uncertainty that has become essential to Umbilical. Coming from different artistic worlds, we’ve converged to build something together, unsure at times whether we are landing on solid ground or drifting into the unknown. But in that shared disorientation, we’ve found beauty.
Throughout this journey, we’ve sifted through questions, meanings, and intentions—searching for the bridge that connects us, and perhaps, resonates with those who encounter this work. What has emerged is a narrative of transformation, shaped by moments of tension, vulnerability, and deep connection. The process itself has mirrored the work’s themes: a weaving of multiple paths into a collective thread.
Umbilical is not a performance that offers answers. Instead, it invites presence—a way of experiencing through the body, sensing beyond what is seen, and allowing meaning to unfold slowly. It is a space to reflect on personal and shared ties—between people, histories, and places—not just through the past, but through the urgency of the present.
Zul Mahmod, Rizman Putra, thesupersystem
Team Umbilical
Featuring: Aiman Sunor Collective
Producer: ARTFACTORY
Costume design: Aida Sa’ad +
Akbar Syadiq
Lighting & Technical Direction: Andy Lim
Lighting Associate: Gerald Teh
Technical Production: ARTFACTORY - Yap Seok Hui
Sound System Engineer: Joel Fernandez
Set Realisation: Scott Lee
Tracking Specialist: Louis Bryan
Costume Assistant: Dianna Sa’ad
Documentation: Grace Baey
Special Thanks
Natalie Hennedige
Acknowledgements:
Mervyn Quek
Celestine Wong
Cake Theatrical Productions
Production & Technical Teams of SOTA & SIFA
Total Solution Marketing
72-13
Production photos:
Moonrise Studio, courtesy of Arts House Limited
Costume trial videos: Umbilical Costume Dept.
Research sketches: Rizman Putra
#SIFA2025 #SIFAMoreThanEver
Bawang Putih Bawang Merah
An Esplanade Commission
by @teaterekamatra
Written by @binfilem
Directed by Mohd Fared Jainal
10th - 12th May 2024
Singtel Waterfront Theatre
Photos: @a.syadiq Manic Blue photo by Munah OP Skate Kids by Ali
The level of intensity working on this piece is beyond words. But I am immensely grateful for having these beautiful humans assisting me for the last 29 days. T-8 to the opening - this feels like a durational performance altogether. #wip #immemorial #saw2022 #sgartweek2022 Photos: Bud Young and Syarfa Syahiran
In case you needed a reason to come watch 6 Microlectures on Genocides, here are some words from our Busan collaborator and organiser of Inter Asian Performance Festival, Jun Sangbae.
Limited tickets are still available for our show in Singapore. Don’t miss out on the chance to catch this work and get your tickets now in the link in our bio.
📸: Choi Woochang
We are happy to share that we’ve added 2 more shows and tickets are now available in the link in our bio. We are deeply heartened by the overwhelming response and thank you to all for sharing about this work, for the support and for keeping the conversation going. 🤍
Photos of our performance in Busan featuring Hwang Miae as our Korean narrator.
“There are places in the world where public squares do not fully exist—or where they have been diminished, controlled, or silenced. In such conditions, theatre becomes more than an art form. It becomes a space of gathering, of witnessing, of speaking.” - Jun Sangbae (Organiser of Inter-Asian Performance Festival where 6mlog was presented at earlier this month)
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6 Microlectures on Genocides returns to Singapore for a limited run from 21-23 May and tickets are selling fast. Don’t miss out on the chance to experience this work and get your tickets now in the link in our bio.
📸: Choi Woochang
Something to catch after SIFA, ISPA and all else that’s going on?
We hope that you can bring your friends, family or anyone passing through Singapore to come catch this work so we can all sit with it, think through it, and talk about it together. 🤍
𝙄𝙣 𝙩𝙝𝙞𝙨 𝙛𝙧𝙖𝙜𝙢𝙚𝙣𝙩𝙚𝙙 𝙬𝙤𝙧𝙡𝙙, 𝙖𝙧𝙩𝙞𝙨𝙩𝙨 𝙖𝙨𝙠 𝙤𝙪𝙧𝙨𝙚𝙡𝙫𝙚𝙨 𝙬𝙝𝙖𝙩 𝙙𝙤 𝙬𝙚 𝙙𝙤 𝙬𝙝𝙚𝙣 𝙬𝙚 𝙨𝙚𝙚 𝙖𝙩𝙧𝙤𝙘𝙞𝙩𝙞𝙚𝙨, 𝙙𝙞𝙨𝙥𝙤𝙨𝙨𝙚𝙨𝙨𝙞𝙤𝙣, 𝙢𝙖𝙨𝙨 𝙠𝙞𝙡𝙡𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙜𝙚𝙣𝙤𝙘𝙞𝙙𝙚?
This work was first thought of more than a year ago with the question above.
When contemplating how to respond to the Genocide, Heng Leun and Rizman invited six writers - A Yagnya, Haresh Sharma, Nabilah Said, Neo Hai Bin, Oon Shu An, and Zulfadli Rashid - to write short lectures on Genocide, giving shape to the work’s title.
In this little island of Singapore, any conversation about Gaza is always conducted with so much caution. Warnings from the government that instead of calling out the injustice, we should focus on humanitarian efforts.
This work focuses on this disquiet, deafening and alienating silence on Genocide in Singapore, and maybe even in many parts of the world still.
6 Microlectures on Genocides returns to Singapore following its tour to Taipei and Busan. The performance premiered in Nepal at the International People’s Theatre Festival in March 2025.
𝟲 𝗠𝗶𝗰𝗿𝗼𝗹𝗲𝗰𝘁𝘂𝗿𝗲𝘀 𝗼𝗻 𝗚𝗲𝗻𝗼𝗰𝗶𝗱𝗲𝘀
📆: 21 - 23 May 2026, 10pm
📍: Practice Space, 54 Waterloo Street
Tickets now available in the link in our bio
After its time in Taipei and Busan, we’re looking forward to bringing this work back home—back to Singapore. ❤️ Ticketing details will be released very soon, stay tuned.
And just like that our time in Busan comes to an end. It’s been a meaningful last couple of days here and we’re thankful to Space Theater for the opportunity to meet audiences here and to receive such heartwarming responses.
It is a bittersweet moment as we wrap up our tour. Cross-border collaborations are incredibly precious and being able to share this work with audiences beyond Singapore even more so. We are deeply grateful for the hospitality and kindness we’ve received over these last couple of weeks & we too will carry these memories for a long time. 🤍
As for what’s next…where do we go from here?
We’re excited to share that 6 Microlectures on Genocides will be back on stage somewhere soon. But where exactly? Stay tuned to this page for more details to come!
📸: Sangbae
Welcoming audiences to our first show here in Busan. It was an intimately packed house for our opening night here where 6 Microlectures on Genocides is being presented as part of Inter Asian Performance Festival by @spacetheateronionking . We have one last show today and we hope to see you there!
