Wild Rice responds to Singapore ban on ‘Homepar' performance, rejects claims of glamorising drug abuse

Malay Mail

21-06-2025

SINGAPORE, June 21 — Singapore theatre company Wild Rice has pushed back against allegations that its Homepar performance glamorises drug use, after the Infocomm Media Development Authority (IMDA) and Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) issued a ban on its staging.
In a statement shared on Instagram and Facebook yesterday, Wild Rice 'categorically rejected' the authorities' characterisation of the work.
The company described Homepar as 'a nuanced and empathetic work that is, at its core, about healing and recovery'.
'The central character's journey is one of struggle, resilience, and the power of community in overcoming addiction and stigma,' Wild Rice stated, adding that the play does not condone or glorify drug use.
'It seeks to ask why people — real people, in our society — turn to drugs, often as a response to trauma, discrimination, and marginalisation,' the company said, noting that the play features a 'spectrum of attitudes' and ends in a celebration that is 'explicitly and intentionally drug-free'.
Homepar, written by Mitchell Fang, was intended as a 'work in development' and not a full production.
Wild Rice said the dramatised reading was part of an artistic process to gather feedback and refine the script.
'We also believe that the arts must have the space to explore complex, often uncomfortable realities,' the company added, reaffirming its commitment to 'responsible storytelling' and 'working constructively with regulators' to ensure the work can be properly understood.
In a joint statement the same day, the IMDA and MHA said the dramatised reading had been 'disallowed in its current form', just one day before it was due to be performed.
The decision, they said, followed a significant revision of the script submitted on June 5, which differed from an earlier version submitted in April.
According to the statement, the updated version 'glamorises drug abuse and portrays an undercover Central Narcotics Bureau (CNB) officer shielding abusers from detection'.
'It undermines Singapore's anti-drug policy, our drug rehabilitation regime, and public confidence in the CNB,' the authorities added, noting that such content was not permissible under the Arts Entertainment Classification Code (AECC), which prohibits performances that compromise Singapore's national interests.
IMDA said it had approved an earlier version of the script submitted on April 21, but Wild Rice chose not to revert to that version.
The regulator reiterated Singapore's zero-tolerance stance on drugs and its commitment to upholding content guidelines to protect the national interest.
According to Wild Rice's website, Homepar refers to house parties in the Singapore gay scene.
The play follows a host who throws a party to cope with a difficult break-up and explore his evolving gender identity — before an unexpected 4am knock on the door changes the course of the evening.