Editors
Check out the 20 July 2010 Today newspaper interview with the Inkpot Editors here: Pages 1 and 2.
Matthew Lyon, Reviews Editor and Web Designer
Matthew was born in England, but was cast out of the country when it became clear he didn't like football and preferred coffee to tea. After setting up and running the A-Level Theatre Studies and Drama course at Raffles Junior College, he is now teaching Theatre at the School of the Arts. Matthew has acted, directed and written for the stage in Singapore. He lives in a glass house with broken windows. He has been writing for the Inkpot since 1999.
Kenneth Kwok, Listings Editor and General Administrator
A former English Language and Literature teacher and then secondary school Vice Principal, Kenneth has worked on various arts-based community projects over the years with the Singapore Drama Educators Association, the Substation, the Necessary Stage, etc. In 2007, Kenneth completed his M.Ed. in Arts in Education and he is currently part of the Arts Education team at the National Arts Council. He continues to be a freelance drama educator. Kenneth is also a reserve member of the Legion of Super Heroes and wannabe back-up singer for Bananarama. He has been writing for the Inkpot since 1999.
On a dark and stormy night, Malcolm decided to try his hand at ballet before rheumatism set in, and signed up for lessons at a local school. For two years, he worked on his sautés and développés while his teacher tried not to look. Modern-dance classes later inspired nightmares of Martha Graham, who would admonish him to dance from his vagina. Since then, he has been convinced that he is neither a turner nor a jumper and is glad to leave the dancing to others. He has been writing for the Inkpot since 2000.
Writers
In 2011, Eugene returned to Singapore after nine years in Boston, MA where he went to college, directed guerrilla theatre in cruising areas, created health programmes for the gay community, performed in drag as Becca D'Bus and got thrown out of the W hotel while dressed as a giant vagina. He also blogs at thornofplenty.wordpress.com, where he comments about culture through the lenses of race, class, queerness, art and fashion. Eugene started writing for the Inkpot in 1999 and stopped in 2001. In 2011, he referred to himself as an adult for the first time in 33 years and started writing for the Inkpot again. These two events are unrelated.
Yi-Sheng is a full-time writer of poetry, plays, reviews, news and corporate flash. His books include the poetry collection last boy, the non-fiction book SQ21: Singapore Queers in the 21st Century, and a novelisation of the film Eating Air. Occasionally, he also reviews for The Straits Times and The Substation Magazine and models for life drawing classes in the nude. And yes, he knows that it's probably a bad idea to be a playwright as well as a critic, but understands that the theatre scene here needs more of both. He's also got a professional blog at http://lastboy.blogspot.com, and is listed in Wikipedia in Swedish. Plus he won the Singapore Literature Prize (English category) in 2008. Woohoo! He has been writing for the Inkpot since 2005 and currently assists with the Inkpot dance listings.
Stephanie trained at the Laban Center (UK), has a BA in Anthropology/Arts History and a Ph.D. in Contemporary Dance. She was the Artistic Director of Canberra Dance Theatre (1978-2001), was awarded the first Choreographic Fellowship at the Australian Choreographic Centre and an ACT Lifetime Achievement award, and has received Australia Council funding over several years for choreographic projects. Tasmanian born, she lives in Singapore, lectures at Singapore Management University and is a dance critic, writer and editor of Shifting Sands: Dance in Asia and the Pacific (2006) and Beyond the Apsara: Celebrating Dance in Cambodia (2009). She is also the series editor for the Routledge Celebrating Dance in Asia and the Pacific series. She has been writing for the Inkpot since 2006.
Vivienne is surprised that she likes her 9 - 5 desk job as an online journalist (though it's 9.30 - 6.30 in her case). It leaves her plenty of time to do her own thing (like write reviews) yet still gives her a deluded satisfaction that she is a productive working member of society. The monthly paycheck is also a huge plus, as it feeds her gargantuan consumer appetite for all things beautiful and useless. She used to act, still tries to write, and desperately wants to exercise more. She has been writing for the Inkpot since 2007.
A young lawyer who has already sold her soul twice over: once to her future profession, and a second time to her government. When not enmeshed in the web-like intricacies of the law, Karin enjoys riding, climbing, tennis, a night out with friends, belting out a catchy song and having a good hearty laugh. She is addicted to anything Quite Interesting, and follows British comedies and satire with a passion that her friends can only shake their heads at with tolerant amusement. She is also quite the incorrigible theatre buff, and has been writing her own personal reflections and reviews on the plays and shows she's caught on her own blog for several years before joining the Inkpot team in 2009.
Michelle Tan is a Theatre Arts and French Studies graduate from Brown University, where she focused on the areas of playwriting and production. She is currently based in Singapore after her recent stint in Sydney where she worked as Assistant Production Coordinator in the Really Useful Company. Her love for theatre began during her magical years at Victoria Junior College and has since taken her around the world, though she is now glad to be home (truly). Michelle joined the Inkpot team in 2011.
Naeem Kapadia is a graduate from the London School of Economics and is currently a finance lawyer based in Singapore. His amateur acting credits include essaying the role of Sang Nila Utama in Act 3's Singaporeana Kool! staged as part of the Singapore Festival of Arts and a political rebel in Chong Tze Chien's P.I.E. presented by the Singapore Playhouse London during his undergraduate years. He has directed student drama productions in London and Singapore and also served as a theatre critic for the LSE student newspaper, The Beaver. Naeem returned home in 2011 after spending six years finding himself in London and Paris. He likes collecting out-of print editions of plays and also enjoys gourmet food, travelling and cooking. Naeem joined the Inkpot team in 2011.