ArtsTheatre

Reviewing A Thousand Stitches: This SIFA 2025 work is neither Japanese apologism, nor Allied jingoism

Ever since writing the article for SIFA 2025’s full list of programmes, I’ve always been captivated by the emotionless painting used as the thumbnail for A Thousand Stitches. Who was this captivating woman clad in black, and who was she somberly stitching a senninbari (thousand person stitches) belt for?

Fortunately, with a ticket to the show created by Alan Oei and Kaylene Tan, I got to know the answers and along with it, why I was so right to be captivated–so let’s rewind back both to the production and its past.

Plot

The show starts with the introduction of its dynamic duo: Emma (as played by Xuan Ong), an arts conservation intern who has just restored a damaged portrait of a Japanese woman, and Mizuki (as played by Mihaya Shirata), that very same Japanese woman, who comes to life after Emma and we the audience, are transported back to Syonan-to, Japanese-occupied Singapore.

Then, right as I realised that the story only features two actresses, Mizuki goes on to reveal the rest of its characters, albeit uniquely in miniature form. These include Huang Wei, the portraitist, Mizuki’s father, and Tiger, a child adopted by the family. 

We learn that Huang Wei has been commissioned by the Japanese through Mizuki’s father to create a propagandistic painting, and as the performance progresses, so too does his work on the piece.

And as all of this is happening, narrations of the artist’s diary by Emma, along with reenactments of daily life in Syonan-to by Mizuki, vividly portray how these fictional characters responded to the real events of Singapore’s occupation until suddenly, the tide of war changes.

SIFA 2025 A Thousand Stitches
A Thousand Stitches, yet only a cast of five

Shortly after the reveal of the half-finished painting—depicting General Yamashita and his army at the now-destroyed Syonan Shrine with joyous, flag-waving citizens—and Huang Wei’s disappearance, my favourite moment begins with two simultaneous exchanges happening on stage.

In the centre, Miyaha switches between Mizuki, pleading to join the volunteer army, and her father, firmly denying her. Meanwhile, further down, Xuan Ong embodies both the testifying Huang Wei and his interrogating torturer. Eventually, the dialogues of the antagonists sync up, and for separate but equally possible reasons, they lead to Huang Wei’s release.

The last beats of the narrative thus follow Huang Wei’s return to the shophouse, his outburst at Mizuki for fear of her safety, and at last, his completion of the familiar portrait featuring the iconic senninbari.

Finally, with the war’s end and the “last days of the Light of the South” drawing near, we witness the fates of all five characters. And in the show’s final scene, Emma—mirroring Mizuki’s earlier gesture—slashes the restored portrait, ending the story right before it canonically begins.

SIFA 2025 A Thousand Stitches Xuan Ong Plot
Perhaps a testament to the lessons learnt–or even a paradoxical consequence of time travel?

Review

Variety of Artistic Media

So with the plot out of the way, let me point out some of the work’s strengths, such as its variety of artistic media. From the lifelike paintings of Alan Oei and the stirring sound design of Bang Wenfu, to the cutesy dioramas and stunning on-screen effects of Brian Gothong Tan, I felt that every artistic medium employed was not only necessary, but vital in telling this special story.

In particular, I was impressed by how the integration of a camcorder into the story—and the projection of its live feed onto the Drama Centre’s walls—brought us both physically and emotionally closer to the characters and their delightfully tiny props. Moreover, since it cleverly belonged to an era between the story’s two time periods, it never felt out of place.

I also enjoyed Mizuki’s burst into song, where she emotionally belted in her native Japanese tongue about how her father and his fallen comrade fought their way to our shores. Despite everything shown to me so far, her voice still brought out a surprising sympathy in me for these soldiers. It felt so wrong, yet does war determine who is right? Or, merely, who is left?

SIFA 2025 A Thousand Stitches Mihaya Variety of Artistic Media
Whatever the case, it reminded me that these soldiers, too, were mere men

Language

On the topic of Japanese, though, let’s move on to the excellent use of language. Being a native of Kanagawa prefecture, Mihaya Shirata’s bilingualism strongly added to the characterisation of Mizuki. Interestingly, she only speaks Japanese when either talking to her father or when narrating to us, signalling a stronger sense of connection.

And when narrating the kamishibai, a traditional Japanese form of theatre that uses illustrated boards, Mihaya further adds another layer of realism by purposely mispronouncing her Rs as Ls–a mix-up that many English-speaking Japanese actually struggle with! It truly sells the fact that many of these storytellers were fresh off the boat, and that level of attention to detail deserves credit.

SIFA 2025 A Thousand Stitches Mihaya Language
Arigato, Mihaya-san

But besides the obvious, I must additionally give some praise to Xuan Ong for her accent control as well. Her formal English accent when presenting at the show’s start is hilariously accurate to how most interns, including myself, speak. 

However, it could also be seen as a subtle nod to how we’ve simply just replaced one kind of colonialism with another. And seeing as how Emma directly namedrops “Cool Japan” when talking about, among other things, her mother’s love for J-Pop idols and her own collection of Gudetama merch, I reflect: maybe we’re just more susceptible to soft power than hard…

Historical Details

Finally, as an amateur history buff, how could I not mention the small yet important details that make this production so much more authentic? Fair warning: I’m not a Japanese speaker, hence I can’t fully verify that everything presented here in the language is era-appropriate.

But, if Mizuki’s use of Dai Nippon (Great Japan)—instead of just Nippon—to refer to what was known as the Empire of Japan at the time is any indication to go by, then I’d say I have strong faith that the scriptwriters did their homework to keep things accurate.

SIFA 2025 A Thousand Stitches
And if you haven’t realised, subtitled translations like those on top kept us gaijin in the loop whenever Japanese was spoken

Great touch, by the way, to have Mihaya and the digital timestamps use the designations stating the year of the reign of the Japanese Emperor, which in this case, would be the Shōwa era. It serves as yet another subtle cultural difference between Mizuki and Emma, whilst also adding a breath of realism.

And the sound design–don’t even get me started. From the use of Aikoku Kōshinkyoku (Patriotic March) to Terang Bulan (Bright Moon)—which, fun fact, would later become the melody for the Malaysian national anthem—every piece played during the reenactments felt carefully chosen. 

Add to that the chilling clips of Truman’s announcement of the Hiroshima bombing and Emperor Hirohito’s Jewel Voice Broadcast marking Japan’s surrender, and it’s clear: that even if these audios didn’t exist or weren’t played when the show sets them in, the dedication by Bang Wenfu to at least keep the sound design historically accurate is commendably present.

Overall Thoughts

As stated in the title, A Thousand Stitches is not an act of Japanese apologism, as evidenced by its depictions of real atrocities like the Sook Ching massacre and the constant surveillance of the Kempeitai on those suspected.

However, it is also neither Allied jingoism, as Xuan Ong’s Huang Wei supports by grotesquely describing how the Western bombings blew Tiger’s arm clean off, leaving nothing but blood, “so much blood everywhere.”

At the heart of it, what A Thousand Stitches is instead is both a message about the permanent consequences of war–and yet also the enduring presence of hope. To put it as a metaphor introduced at the start by Emma and only completed at the end by Mizuki, hope is like dust. 

Sure, it gets everywhere–including the slash across that emotionless painting. But it only gets there with time, which, as they say, heals all wounds. So, to end with what I infer the performance is asking: would you rather hide your wound and conserve your heart, or would you rather wear your grief openly, letting the world pour into your gash?

Whatever your choice is, I’m sure that within each side’s threads of reason, a commonality can be stitched together.

SIFA 2025 A Thousand Stitches Cover Image

SIFA 2025

With the second week of SIFA 2025 over, check out the festival’s official website and Instagram, plus Art House Limited’s TikTok and YouTube for the latest yet limited happenings left.

🗓️ Date: 16 May to 1 June 2025
📍Location: Various locations

And while you’re at it, check out our review of The Sea and the Neighbourhood as well to see how SIFA 2025 kicked off. Hopefully, we’ll see you at the next SIFA event.


Visuals Courtesy of Crispian Chan.

Caden Ng

I like ice kacang

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