Press
For production reviews & interviews, please check out the individual work pages.
“10 Young Singapore Theatre Directors to Look Out For” — Esplanade Offstage
“What sort of director are you?
I gravitate towards projects and processes that embrace innovation and experimentation while maintaining a rigorous investigation of both content and form. I am particularly excited by the melding of theatre and dance, and am primarily guided by curiosity and compassion in my art-making.
What's one favourite/memorable show you have directed and why?
Where Are You?, a devised physical theatre production about how we experience grief and confront death. It weaved stories from both the performers and the interviewees, encompassing a rich tapestry of cultures and perspectives, and this deeply personal work fostered an intense connection amongst the collaborators and with the audience. I’ve worked on four vastly different iterations of this project over four years—twice in New York (in 2019 and 2022), once in Singapore (in 2021), as well as digitally on Zoom (in 2020)—and it was a fascinating experimentation of how devised works can be profoundly influenced by their context and collaborators.”
“Esplanade’s Trip programme: Young directors to debut two contrasting plays in April” — The Straits Times
“SINGAPORE - Two 27-year-old New York University graduates have been handpicked by the Esplanade to direct a pair of sharply contrasting plays at the performing arts centre in April.
Sim Yan Ying’s No Particular Order, written by Joel Tan, is a violent swirl of 18 vignettes with a rotating cast of 43 characters, all living in the shadow of despotic rule. Played by just four actors – including veteran Karen Tan and The Straits Times’ 2023 Life Theatre Awards’ best actress Arielle Jasmine Van Zuijlen – the work takes in bureaucrats, soldiers, artists and tour guides in a sweeping and not always chronological look at a society in turmoil.
[…] The Esplanade’s programmer of Trip, Ms Alicia Chong, 29, says: “The main focus is really giving them two things – opportunities and resources. We link them up with more experienced designers, a more experienced production team. We take care of the marketing because a lot of early-career directors tend to have to wear many hats, as they also have to self-produce.”
She says Sim and Yeong were picked from a pool of 20 applicants because they were “thoughtful, passionate and very articulate”.”
“Bringing New Voices And Renewed Energy To Singapore’s Theatre Scene” — FEMALE Singapore
“This fast-rising theatre artist, who prefers to be known as YY, was drawn into the discipline as a child, seeing it as a way of questioning the world and channelling her curiosity. Now 26, she’s translated that inquisitiveness into an eclectic portfolio that spans acting, directing and writing, both in Singapore and New York. The heavy topics she has tackled are diverse – from the complex dynamics of mother- daughter relationships in Singapore, to processing death and grief, the worshipping of white culture, and post-colonial baggage.
[…] For YY, the beauty of theatre lies in how it builds bridges between people from different communities who might not otherwise be exposed to one another – something crucial in a fractious world. That belief is reflected in how her works tend to involve folks of different ethnic, cultural and socioeconomic backgrounds.”
“Meet Sim Yan Ying “YY”” — VoyageATL
“In every work I make, I strive to ask deep and difficult questions, digging into the parts of ourselves that are messy, complex, and sometimes ugly. In “I LOVE WHITE MEN”, I question our dating preferences and expose the small, insidious ways that some of us continue to perpetuate white supremacy—to encourage self-reflection and a new way of moving forward. One of my favourite quotes remains, “Shame dies when stories are told in safe places” (Ann Voskamp), and I strongly believe that through creating a brave space for compassionate honesty and radical empathy, theatre has the power to unite us in our shared humanity.
[…] I don’t profess to be able to change the world with my art; all I seek to do is create a safe and judgment-free space where we can, for an hour or two, come together, feel deeply, and bravely face the complexity of human beings in all our messy and contradictory wonder.”
“Meet Yan Ying “YY” Sim | Theatre Artist” — VoyageATL (on work-life balance)
“The balance is a perennial challenge! As a freelance theatre artist, I have very busy periods where practically every waking moment is taken up by work – rehearsals, meetings, drafts to write or look over, a constant stream of emails and messages; and also lull periods when I stop, breathe, look around and… feel insecure because everyone else seems to be busier than me. But before I have time to let that sink in, I’m whisked off to another project again.
Because of my constantly shifting schedule, I’ve found it important to schedule dedicated break times or block out an evening every week to be a “chill night”. And because work messages and emails can come in at literally any time of the day, I’ve started intentionally putting my phone on airplane mode when I’m having meals with friends or family so I can have uninterrupted quality time with them. These little ways of compartmentalisation have helped me be more present and at peace.”
“Filling the 'gap' by pursuing passion in theatre” — The Straits Times
“While her peers were mulling over which university to choose and what to major in, Ms Sim Yan Ying was undertaking creative roles and production responsibilities in the theatre industry.
Having graduated from Hwa Chong Institution after her A levels in 2013, she shelved her pursuit of a degree to explore her passion in theatre. "Working with local theatre companies allowed me to experience different roles such as acting and stage managing. This deepened my understanding of theatre as an art and as a profession. I am more focused in university now because I have a clearer sense of purpose, and I know what I want to achieve," said the first-year drama student at New York University's Tisch School of the Arts.
Ms Sim, 20, is among a growing group of youth who are taking a gap year before university.”