In Stanislaus’ final year at the École Philippe Gaulier in 2022, she has a major opportunity to work on solo works for foreign audiences.
A Canadian theater producer wanted to work with international talent at a French school and was impressed by Stanislaus’ performance.
“The producers wanted to come up with a clown show while bringing together international artists and local Canadian creators,” Stanislaus said. “So I created a clown show that was influenced by my Southeast Asian background and made it appealing and relevant to Canadian audiences.”
Thus was born Mail Ordered, a comedy that brings home the seriousness of child trafficking in Cambodia and its impact on women in the region.
“I have volunteered with organizations focused on supporting women and girls in Southeast Asia,” she said. “One of my expeditions was to Cambodia, where I learned about the horrific practice of girls being trafficked as young brides. I wanted to bring that to the stage and use clowning and comedy to express its importance. I thought.”
Stanislaus plays Lyra, a young girl who “sells” her qualities to the audience in hopes of marrying a much older, wealthy man who will take care of her.
The sold-out show ran for six months in 2023 in Vancouver, Toronto, Winnipeg, Calgary and Edmonton, Canada. It has also appeared in New York City, USA.
Mail Ordered also won several awards, including the Jester’s Cap Emerging Artist Award at last year’s Calgary Fringe Festival.
“I still can’t believe it happened. It was the first time I realized the value of being a Singaporean creator,” Stanislaus said.
“The reception to ‘Mail Ordered’ showed us that people want to hear and see the stories of Singaporean women with crazy ideas and literal clowns,” she added. “I have space for myself outside, so I want to extend that space to my home as well.”
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