(IPS) feature

Singapore's urbane non-character - highlighted by a pop culture marked by the penchant for having coloured hair and aping the MTV swag - poses a tough hurdle for purists out to revive a vanishing part of the island state's Chinese immigrant heritage: the street opera.

Akin to the London-based production Miss Saigon, which performed to full houses in Singapore's Kallang Theatre in September with all its drama, haunting arias and subtle movements, Chinese street opera is in transition, caught between the need to maintain its classical roots while at the same time appearing contemporary to the urbanised, affluent audience.