Curtain Call

Tell us a bit about yourself!
Hi, I’m Shannon, and right now I’m studying for a degree in performance making at the Nanyang Academy of Fine Arts. I’m also trying to be a fashionista on TikTok!

We love that! First things first, tell us more about what performance making entails.
It’s very multidisciplinary and we work with dancers a lot. So we don’t just act, we also look at movement and come up with performances in a multifaceted way. We basically have to be a jack of all trades and cover everything.

Is there a particular aspect of performance making that you’re most interested in?
I’m very interested in movement, so I prefer physical theatre. I do like to act as well, but I think I prefer creating meaningful performances that make an impact on people, and acting is just one facet of that.

How do you think your relationship with movement and your own body has changed since embarking on this degree?
I think back then when I first started, my interest for theatre was quite superficial because I simply liked to perform and be on stage. But as I got to know more about the craft, I find that it’s really just like any other art form where you invest a lot of time and energy to practising your craft, and because of that, you need a lot of tie to hone your skills.

Studying for this degree has really expanded my emotional range as a person too, because you have to be very empathetic to understand your characters, and how you can send a specific message across, even if it’s in a situation that you’re not necessarily a part of.

For example, I recently did a piece about the transgender community in Indonesia. I’m not trans myself, but I had to do a lot of research and interview with trans women in Indonesia. That’s the thing I’m really passionate about—using art as a means of bridging the gaps between people.

Being so in touch with your emotions is definitely both a blessing and a curse. How do you handle feeling really down?
My God, I don’t really suppress it, I just kind of let it pass. So I feel whatever I have to feel, and let it pass in its own time.

Sometimes, we try to cover up our emotions by saying I’m a bad bitch or whatever, but sometimes you just got to be in your feels. Your body knows what to do, so you just got to trust the process and let it do its own thing and naturally get rid of the toxic shit in your life.

What’s been keeping you going these days?
Myself, and just really trusting the process and knowing that everything will work out for me. I’ve had shit happen to me in the past, and it’s made me become a better person. I’m very grateful for where I am now, so it’s vibes, it’s vibes.

Love that confidence! Moving on to content creation now—how did you first get into it?
I think it started because I like to dress up, and my friends were always like “Oh, my God, you should share your fits” and I was like “Okay, bet!”. So I started sharing my fits and didn’t get a lot of views lah, but I just kept it up because I really liked it. My friends then started pushing me to take kit more seriously, and when I did, I found a lot of passion in creating.

I also wanted to create a change in the TikTok scene because it’s quite saturated with the same content over and over again. I try to create a nice community of friends who are as driven and passionate as I am about the same things, and about wanting to contribute to the arts and creative scene in Singapore.

Love how you’ve found your people online! How long did it take you to find your personal style?
It took me quite a while, but now I’ve reached a point where I’m no longer scared to dress up a bit differently.

Since I started hanging out with my community of fashionista friends, I’ve been inspired by their boldness. In my head, I’ve always wanted to be like them, but have always been so scared of what other people might think of me. But now I’m just like “You know what? Fuck it. I’m going all in.” and it made me realise that actually, nobody really gives a fuck!

That’s interesting because you already seem very comfortable with being vulnerable as a performer, so what was it about fashion that made you feel the need to be bolder?
Wow, that’s a very good question! I think it’s because in theatre, everybody has this uniform. We all have to wear black, almost as if we’re a black canvas for anything. So with fashion, it’s an outlet for me to express myself.

In theatre, I feel like I’m more of a vehicle for others to express their opinions, but with fashion, I feel like I can truly share my own voice with people.