Sim Yan Ying “YY”

SIM YAN YING “YY” [she/her] is a theatre artist based in Singapore and New York. She creates as a director, performer, writer, and deviser, and strives to make works that are experimental and accessible, physical in nature, and reflective of a diversity of lived experiences. YY believes in the power of live performance to bridge perspectives within and across communities in an increasingly polarised world.

Her original works include: Where Are You? (Wild Rice/Mabou Mines), a series of productions on how we experience grief and confront death; Who Are You? (Esplanade), a devised performance about migrant-local relationships in Singapore; I LOVE WHITE MEN (Caveat NYC/Ars Nova/Dixon Place), a one-woman show excavating white worship and postcolonial baggage from an immigrant’s perspective in New York; and Without Reason (ArtsWok Collaborative/Esplanade) about the struggles of an interracial relationship in Singapore.

Digital works: Who’s There? (New Ohio Theatre), an international collaboration about the socio-political and racial unrests in 2020; (un)becoming (T:>Works N.O.W. 2021), exploring the complex dynamics of mother-daughter relationships in modern-day Singapore; and Bloodlines 血脉 (Fault Line Theatre), a work-in-progress with artists across the Sinosphere examining the volatility and promise of Chinese-ness.

YY obtained a BFA in Theatre and a BA in Psychology from New York University, and has trained in programs such as The Necessary Stage’s Devising Platform, Singapore Repertory Theatre’s Directing Residency, and SITI Company’s Summer Intensive. She is presently a Director under the Esplanade TRIP program, an Associate Artist at Fault Line Theatre, and a participant of Emergency Academy.