The publisher of Tatler Singapore continues to champion the English literacy cause—and this year’s project takes the form of a digital multimedia experience in support of local charity Playeum.
When Noorlinah Mohamed first read the book Words Without Walls, the theatre artist and arts educator was very taken by the eight stories written by incarcerated women who had been separated from their children and families.
“Each of the stories tells a tale of love, hope and longing, and was filled with beautiful imagery. The first thing I thought of was that I would like to stage it as a multimedia experience with puppetry,” said Noorlinah.
This was just the project that the team at Tatler Asia (Singapore), which publishes Tatler Singapore, had been trying to get off the ground since publishing the children’s storybook in 2017 with non-profit organisation New Life Stories.
“We had great material, so we thought of all the ways we could convert these stories into another format or medium, from songs to animated videos. As it turned out, we found the talents who could translate them into a theatre production,” said former managing director Corinne Ng, who first mooted this project.
The Tatler team was introduced to Noorlinah by Charlotte Goh, the executive director of Playeum, a local charity which uses play and the arts to work with all children including those from marginalised backgrounds and with varying disabilities. Its mission is aligned with Tatler Asia (Singapore)’s commitment to promoting English literacy among children and youth, particularly those from marginalised communities.
(Related: Words Without Walls: An English Literacy Project By Edipresse Media Singapore)
A collaboration was forged for the next stage of the publisher’s Words Without Walls project, with Playeum as its beneficiary. However, the pandemic halted the launch of a theatre production in March last year, along with the planned shows for community children and their adults.
After much deliberation, the team decided to go ahead with a digital production of Words Without Walls: A Multimedia Experience, which was launched today via Zoom to a group of Tatler and Playeum friends who have supported the fundraising effort.
“The last year has been a challenging time for all of us. Tatler Singapore continues to champion the English Literacy cause this year with the launch of Words Without Walls: A Multimedia Experience, in support of Playeum. We hope that with the new format, the stories can reach even more children,” says Susana Tsui, president for Southeast Asia at Tatler Asia.
(Related: Philanthropists Danny Yong and Alvin Lim Team Up to Strengthen Their Charity Efforts in Singapore)