Difficult? Shocking? Maybe it's just good art

THE curtain-raiser for the Singapore International Festival of Arts (SIFA), the contemporary opera Facing Goya, certainly set tongues a-wagging. After the opening night, an arts journalist from Europe said to me: "That was absolutely terrible. Does this Ong Keng Sen even know how to block actors? They were just standing there like pieces of furniture."

I said: "He's directed actors since the 80s. He started with hit musicals and moved to classic dramas like Miss Julie and The Trojan Women . . . So, yes, he knows how to block actors."

"Then why didn't he do it this time?"