Pandan
by Hazwan Norly Rupa co.lab M1 Singapore Fringe Festival 2021: Quiet Riot! (organised and curated by TNS) Esplanade Theatre Studio, Singapore This is the second full-length production by Malay theatre collective Rupa co.lab after the powerful Rumah Dayak in late 2019. Presented as part of the M1 Singapore Fringe Festival 2021 , it's a sensitive and nuanced look into the lived experience of Malay-Muslim homosexuals in Singapore. The action centres round Jihad (Irsyad Dawood), a closeted swimming instructor who is in a relationship with an older man, Ramlan (Saifuddin Jumadi), a religious leader at his mosque. Jihad's best friend and confidante is the feisty, tomboyish Zana (Syimah Sabtu), who meets a religious man on a dating app and tries to adopt a more conservative image. Rounding out the quartet is Ramlan's good-natured and unsuspecting wife, Ramlah (Dalifah Shahril), a budding livestream baker who treats Jihad as a surrogate son. Interspersed in the narrative are sc