ABSTRACT
I trained first in ballet and since then contemporary dance (modern), physical theatre, Southeast Asian theatre and dance forms, Malay folk dance and silat, Chinese classical dance and martial arts. I have many people who have inspired me from my learning and working in Penang, Kuala Lumpur, Singapore, Japan, Holland, Denmark, and the USA. I would not have learned, experienced and captured the memory, traditions and language of dance and performance in its total context and essence if I had not met them, been inspired by their works and principles, and did not struggle and sweat in their presence. They all guided and shaped me well. I consider issues of gender, feminism, and the environment, and social issues as critical. I work as a solo artist and collaboratively in site-specific, outdoor and alternative performance spaces and performance media, interactive and live music, responding to sensory stimulation with the outdoor environment and public. I work with contemporary dance rooted in deconstruction of tradition and new dance and physical theatre to create dynamic, live performance. I create devised dance theatre material collaboratively with interdisciplinary artists and performers and also in all-inclusive environments. I focus on the power of the group and eliminating the power of the individual and role of choreographer. I am open to non-traditional methods of performance, shifting a context that challenges audience perceptions, to trigger dreamtime and lead audience to the gaze theory — in the moment with the performers. I use memory capture 208and three-dimensional study to discover the energy of each moment-to-moment gesture and facial expression of the character to develop phrases — that builds a storyboard. The attempt is to clearly express and communicate the feelings and stories of the characters in a new language of original movement quality.
