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Huzir Sulaiman

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Huzir Sulaiman
Born (1973-06-08) 8 June 1973 (age 51)
Malaysia
Alma materPrinceton University
Occupations
  • Artistic director
  • actor
  • producer
  • director
Spouse
​
(m. 2004)​

Huzir Sulaiman (born 8 June 1973) is a Malaysian director and actor. He is the co-founder and Joint Artistic Director of Checkpoint Theatre. A critically acclaimed and award-winning playwright, his Collected Plays 1998-2012 was published in 2013. His plays have been translated into German, Japanese, Polish, Indonesian and Mandarin. His essays and commentary pieces have appeared in The Star, The Straits Times and The Huffington Post.

Theatre career

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Sulaiman directing includes Thick Beats for Good Girls (2018), FRAGO (2017), The Good, the Bad and the Sholay (2015), Interrogating the Interrogators: Selected Plays of Chong Tze Chien (2015); #UnicornMoment (2014); the 15th anniversary production of Atomic Jaya (2013); City Night Songs (2012); and The Good, the Bad and the Sholay (2011), for which he was nominated for Best Director in the 2012 Life! Theatre Awards. Huzir was educated at Princeton University, where he won the Bain-Swiggett Poetry Prize and is a Yale World Fellow.[1]

Academic career

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Currently an Adjunct Associate Professor with the National University of Singapore's University Scholars Programme, Huzir has taught playwriting at the National University of Singapore's English Department; the School of the Arts, Singapore; New York University Tisch Asia ; and Nanyang Technological University.

Other career

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He also heads Studio Wong Huzir, a creative consultancy.

For a short time in the early part of the 1990s, he hosted an afternoon talk show on WOW FM, a now-defunct Malaysian radio station. He also had a brief television stint starring as Bendul, a Malaysian version of Mr Bean, popularized by Rowan Atkinson.[2]

In the 1990s, Huzir also spent a year writing sketches with the Instant Café Theatre Company before starting the Straits Theatre Company in 1996. He began writing plays in 1997.[3] He also dabbled in film writing, writing the screenplay for the Malaysian film Dukun.[4]

He also contributed articles to The Star and The Huffington Post, and involved himself in the publishing of the online magazine POSKOD.SG.

Personal life

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Sulaiman's father was Haji Sulaiman Abdullah (1946-2023), who was born G. Srinivasan Iyer, a Tamil Brahmin who later converted to Islam.[5] Sulaiman was a veteran lawyer who served as Malaysian Bar Council president. His mother was law professor Hajjah Mehrun Siraj (1945-2021), a Commissioner with the Human Rights Commission of Malaysia,[6] daughter of women's rights activist Khatijun Nissa Siraj (1925-2023).[7]

Sulaiman married Claire Wong, a lawyer, actor and director, in 2004.[8] Sulaiman is a permanent resident in Singapore.[8]

Director

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Theatre
Year Title Notes
1998 Atomic Jaya Performed by Jo Kukathas on 11 March 1998 at The Actors Studio Theatre, Kuala Lumpur.
2006 A Language of Their Own It was debuted in 2006 in Singapore, produced by Checkpoint Theatre.
2007 Cogito A commission of the Singapore Arts Festival 2007, it opened at the Drama Centre, Singapore on 13 June 2007. It was produced by Checkpoint Theatre. It debuted in Australia on 9 February 2012 at La Mama Theatre, Melbourne.
2011 The Good, the Bad and the Sholay Written by Shiv Tandan and co-directed with Huzir Sulaiman, it first premiered at the NUS Arts Festival 2011 as a NUS Stage and Checkpoint Theatre production. It was nominated for Best Original Script, Best Director and Production of the Year at the Straits Times Life! Theatre Award.
2012 City Night Songs It was written and composed by its performers Gani Abdul Karim, Oon Shu An, Nessa Anwar, Judy Au, Nishant Jalgaonkar, Ivan Surya Tjahyo, and Joel Tan under the eye of Huzir Sulaiman. It was produced by Checkpoint Theatre with NUS Stage.
2013 Atomic Jaya Performed by Claire Wong and Karen Tan (actor). This edition of the play was presented by Checkpoint Theatre at School of the Arts (SOTA) Drama Theatre from 24 October to 1 November 2013.
2014 #UnicornMoment Written and performed by Oon Shu An and co-directed with Shiv Tandan. It was a collaboration with Esplanade – Theatres on the Bay and Checkpoint Theatre. It ran from 8 to 10 May 2014 at Esplanade Theatre Studio.
(+65) Singapore Calling Co-directed with Claire Wong. Presented by Checkpoint Theatre and Playwriting Australia, in conjunction with the National Play Festival, and with support from the Singapore International Foundation.
2015 The Good, the Bad and the Sholay Co-directed with Shiv Tandan. It was presented as a collaboration between Checkpoint Theatre and Esplanade – Theatres on the Bay for Kalaa Utsavam – Indian Festival of Arts.[9]
2017 FRAGO Written by Lucas Ho and produced by Checkpoint Theatre. It ran from 13 to 23 July at the Drama Centre Black Box in Singapore. Its ensemble cast was made up of Ali Anwar[permanent dead link‍], Adib Kosnan, Chong Woon Yong, Alfred Loh, Timothy Nga, Zaaki Nasir, Cerys Ong, Stanley Seah, Derrick Tay, Jo Tan, and Tan Sieow Ping.
2018 Thick Beats for Good Girls Directed and dramaturge. Written and performed by Pooja Nansi and Jessica Bellamy. It was held at the Drama Centre Black Box.
2020 Two Songs and a Story Created, directed and dramaturge. Co-directed with Joel Lim.
2021 The Music of Checkpoint Theatre Co-directed with James Khoo.
Vulnerable Directed and dramaturge. An 8-part podcast is available for listening on Spotify, SoundCloud, and YouTube. Two new episodes released every two days from 17 June.
Session Zero Directed and dramaturge.
2022 Chamber Readings: The Weight of Silk on Skin by Huzir Sulaiman Directed and playwright.
2023 Brown Boys Don't Tell Jokes Written by Myle Yan Tay.
2023 Tender Submission Co-directed with Chen Yingxuan. Written by Lucas Ho.

Plays

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Theatre
Year Title Notes
1997 Lazy Hazy Crazy This was Huzir's first full-length solo show after starting the Straits Theatre Company.[10]
1998 Atomic Jaya First presented on 11 March 1998. It has been re-staged three times since in 2001, 2003, and 2013.
The Smell of Language Directed by Krishen Jit in 2001, and performed by Huzir Sulaiman. Its premiere was 3 August 1998 at The Actors Studio Theatre in Kuala Lumpur.
Hip-Hopera It was first produced in 1998, by the Straits Theatre Company.
1999 Notes on Life & Love & Painting Directed by Huzir Sulaiman in 1999, it was produced again in 2004, directed by Krishen Jit.
Election Day Directed by Krishen Jit. Directed in 2004 by Claire Wong at The Arts House, Singapore.
2000 Those Four Sisters Fernandez Directed by Krishen Jit.
2002 Occupation Directed by Huzir Sulaiman and Claire Wong.
Whatever That Is Directed by Krishen Jit.
2003 They Will Be Grateful Directed by Krishen Jit.
2004 Opiume: The Narrator's Tale It was performed as part of Mark Chan's chamber opera, Opiume. It was commissioned by the Singapore Arts Festival and Hong Kong New Visions Festival in 2004.
2005 Colony of Singapore Written in under National University of Singapore's (NUS) Art House Writing Fellowship.[11]
2007 Cogito Commission of the Singapore Arts Festival 2007. Featuring Noorlinah Mohamed, Claire Wong, Neo Swee Lin, and James Shubert.
2011 The Weight of Silk on Skin Directed by Claire Wong and performed by Ivan Heng.
2016 The Last Bull: A Life in Flamenco Directed by Claire Wong.
2019 Displaced Persons' Welcome Dinner Commission of the Singapore International Festival of Arts 2019. Directed by Claire Wong.[12]

Screenplays

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Theatre
Year Title Notes
2007 Dukun A Malaysian Horror film released in 2018.

Publications

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  • Eight Plays (2002, Silverfish Books) ISBN 9834081626
  • Huzir Sulaiman: Collected Plays, 1998-2012 (2013, Checkpoint Theatre) ISBN 9789810749026

References

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  1. ^ "Huzir's love letter to Malaysia". Malaysiakini.com. 21 February 2020. Archived from the original on 28 August 2021. Retrieved 30 November 2021.
  2. ^ "A vote for Huzir". 19 February 2001.
  3. ^ Martin, Mayo (18 January 2013). "We RAT on Checkpoint Theatre's Huzir Sulaiman and Claire Wong!". MediaCorp. TODAY. Archived from the original on 21 January 2016. Retrieved 14 September 2014.
  4. ^ Nabilah Said (8 September 2015). "Screen play". The Straits Times. Singapore Press Holdings Ltd. Archived from the original on 19 August 2016. Retrieved 19 August 2016. ...his previous film projects include Malaysian director Dain Said's horror film Dukun (2007)
  5. ^ "Former Bar Council president Sulaiman dies". Malaysiakini. 19 December 2023. Retrieved 19 December 2023.
  6. ^ "Former Suhakam commissioner Mehrun Siraj passes away". Malaysiakini.com. 29 June 2021. Archived from the original on 28 August 2021. Retrieved 30 November 2021.
  7. ^ Xuan, Yong Li (8 March 2023). "Pioneer Muslim women's rights activist Khatijun Nissa Siraj dies at 97". The Straits Times. ISSN 0585-3923. Retrieved 19 December 2023.
  8. ^ a b Migration (24 November 2014). "Actress and director Claire Wong leads the way with excellence | The Straits Times". www.straitstimes.com. Retrieved 27 December 2022.
  9. ^ "Kalaa Utsavam – Indian Festival of Arts". Archived from the original on 10 July 2018. Retrieved 30 November 2021.
  10. ^ Tan, Corrie (28 April 2015). "Playwright Huzir Sulaiman's Atomic Jaya a blast from the past". The Straits Times. Archived from the original on 22 October 2020. Retrieved 30 November 2021.
  11. ^ "Different sides of the Straits". Archived from the original on 28 May 2018. Retrieved 30 November 2021.
  12. ^ "Displaced Persons' Welcome Dinner". SIFA. Archived from the original on 19 March 2020. Retrieved 15 September 2019.
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