Transplant

The Finger Players is one of Singapore’s leading theatre companies, best known for inventively fusing traditional and contemporary puppetry elements and integrating other artistic disciplines into its visually-arresting productions.   

Founded in 1999, The Finger Players is Singapore’s oldest contemporary puppetry theatre company. Since its inception, it has been invited to perform in places such as Africa, Australia, Spain, Paris, Japan, Hungary, South Korea, China, Hong Kong, Taiwan, and Thailand, making it one of Singapore’s most prolific international touring companies.   

As recognition of its remarkable productions, robust track record, and strong advocacy of puppetry, The Finger Players is a recipient of the National Arts Council’s Major Company status, valid for a three-year funding cycle.    

The Finger Players has been awarded the President’s Design Award (2007), the Singapore Youth Award (Team) (2008), and numerous accolades in The Straits Times Life! Theatre Awards for its efforts to engage the masses through drama and its pursuit of artistic excellence in theatre. Its body of work is extensive and has garnered recognition from both domestic and international media.   

The Finger Players’ Core Team consists of Chong Tze Chien, Ellison Tan, Lam Dan Fong, Loo An Ni, Myra Loke, Oliver Chong (Current Artistic Director), Ong Kian Sin, Sindhura Kalidas and Tan Xiang Yi—a collective of award-winning artists, designers and experienced arts managers.   

Oliver Chong is a multi-award-winning and published playwright, director, actor, puppeteer; and set and puppet designer. Some of his memorable works include Every Brilliant Thing, A Fiend’s Diary, Roots, I’m Just A Piano Teacher, Cat, Lost & Found, The Book of Living and Dying, Citizen Pig and Citizen Dog. His numerous wins and nominations at The Straits Times Life! Theatre Awards include Production of the Year, Best Director, Best Script, Best Actor, Best Supporting Actor, Best Ensemble and Best Set Design.   

To date, Oliver’s works have been presented at international arts festivals in Paris, Myanmar, Barcelona, Budapest, Ankara, Bangkok, Taiwan, Hong Kong, Japan and Malaysia. He has conducted playwriting, directing and acting Masterclasses in Hong Kong and Singapore, and has been committed to helping practitioners fine-tune their crafts since 2014.   

Oliver was the Resident Director of The Finger Players (2004 – 2018), and is currently the Artistic Director of the company. He is also the founding member of A Group Of People (2008 – 2012) and the founder of ODDCROP Productions (2019 – present). His published works include Roots, The Book of Living and Dying, I’m Just A Piano Teacher and Cat, Lost & Found. Roots was also read and staged in New Zealand by Proudly Asian Theatre in 2018.   

RUDRA, the name of the Indian deity of destruction, conjures the scene of death and destruction. Just like the deity, the band was named so to symbolise the aggressive character of its music.    

A legend in the Asian metal scene, RUDRA was established in 1992. Since its humble beginning as a Death Metal band, the band went on to pioneer the evolution of a new genre of called Vedic metal. Vedic metal can be characterised as a bridge between the east and the west: incorporating Indian traditional music, Sanskrit chants and mantras into the sounds characteristic of death and black metal.