‘Kopitiam’, the puppet show brewed in nostalgia and memory

Kopitiam, a contemplative puppet performance by Five Stones Theatre, explores themes of love, loss, memory, and the enduring power of human connection. Set in a small coffee shop within Singapore run by an elderly couple, the play grapples with a poignant question: Can the essence of these beloved spaces and the memories they hold survive their physical disappearance? As traditional kopitiams ("coffee shop" in Hokkien) dwindle, this profound tale unfolds.

Five Stones Theatre is a collective dedicated to creating imaginative arts experiences for children and youth. Supported by the National Arts Council Market and Audience Development grant, Kopitiam captivated audiences at the international puppet theatre festival Pesta Boneka in Yogyakarta, Indonesia. The heartwarming story resonated deeply with a multinational audience, demonstrating the universal power of its themes.

Performers with their puppets, for ‘Kopitiam’. Image Credit: Alex Chua

Though a niche art form, puppetry plays an important role in Singapore's theatre scene, offering an innovative and sophisticated means of storytelling.

Bright Ong, Associate Director at Five Stones Theatre, shares his creative vision for Kopitiam and how the play was inspired by his grandmother's love for his grandfather.

A scene from ‘Kopitiam’. Image Credit: Alex Chua

Tell us more about this project.                                                             

Kopitiam was made as a tribute to the idea of love and duty inspired by my grandmother's stories of what it meant to be a wife in her era. But beyond the love story, it was also a mark of respect and remembrance to the institutional origins of our diaspora groups and its geographically unique kopitiam culture. The show was also a representation of how, in modern Singapore and Malaysia, the kopitiam is also a dying trait, with very few standalone businesses these days that will be lost to time.

I initially started out with a desire to tell a contemporary Southeast Asian story about love, duty, food culture and sense memory. But it very quickly morphed into a tale about the love and care, upon which our heritage is built.

What do you hope people took away from watching Kopitiam?

I want my audiences to take away the sense of remembering who we are as a people. The ability to sit under one roof, share a cup of the same brew and spark conversations about anything and everything. I also want them to see the power of time and perhaps urge them to act upon the relationships in their lives whilst they can. Be it with their contemporaries, peers or parents – pick up the phone, make the call and spend your time with them.

A scene from ‘Kopitiam’. Image Credit: Alex Chua

What was it like showcasing a piece of uniquely Singaporean culture like kopitiam culture to an international audience?

I was curious to see if the show would have the same visceral reaction from an international audience. What would they take away, how would they read it and what would they feel about it? Much to my surprise, they were ever so similar in their emotional response to the piece, and those who came up to us after the show shared their personal stories linked to all the themes in the show.

What were some advancements you made with support from the grant?

Through the project, we made solid friendships at the festival it was presented in and fostered an incredible regional and international network with the rest of the artists there. To me, this was particularly important, as the art of puppetry is often overlooked in its ability to reach across borders with the stories it can tell. This project also opened the doors to making a mark on the international scene through our homegrown work.

What is one unforgettable memory you have while working on this project?

We were next to a house that reared chickens and in the days leading up to the show, I noticed that the fowls were crowing at that particular time in which Kopitiam was showing. It was an interesting experience to buy feed and get the owner to coax the chickens to be silent during the run of our show. That was probably the most Southeast Asian experience I've ever had as a performance-maker!