“For people like us in the past, where we don't really have a proper family at home, [the] stage and theatre group was like the only family we knew, where we were able to be very raw and express all our deepest feelings.”

In 1991, an ambitious director made his full-length debut with an adaptation of the opera classic Madame Butterfly. Two years later, a young officer in the Singapore Navy unintentionally landed his first acting gig while accompanying his sister for an audition. In 1995, a flight attendant from Singapore Airlines took a leap of faith by auditioning for a musical. Their paths continue to cross in the years that followed, finally reuniting onstage in 2020, more than two decades after their first ventures into theatre. Moderated by journalist Hong Xinyi, actors Sharon Au, Nelson Chia and Toy Factory Productions’ artistic director Goh Boon Teck discuss their shared histories, inspirations in art-making and the process of adapting history for the stage.