Impossible Mission: Rewriting the Malay Annals through the Sinophone Opera Hang Lipo

The Malay Annals recount the legendary marriage of Ming Princess Hang Lipo to the Sultan of Malacca – a story absent from Chinese records yet pivotal in narratives of Chinese migration to Southeast Asia. Hang Lipo, a Sinophone opera adapted from Malay Annals, was produced by the Dramatic Arts Society (founded in 1963 with US aid under the Union Cultural Organisation) and staged in Kuala Lumpur in 1971 under official promotion after the May 13 Incident. This talk examines variations in translations of Malay Annals, and how the opera reinterpreted the legend within a Cold War context. Ultimately, Hang Lipo was elevated from folklore to an officially endorsed cultural symbol in postcolonial Malaysia.

Speaker 

Dr Hee Wai Siam

Associate Professor of Chinese Studies

School of Humanities

Nanyang Technological University

Recipient of the Nanyang Education Award, A/P Hee specialises in Sinophone studies, Cold War history, Chinese-language cinema, and gender studies. He has authored four monographs and edited five academic volumes. His recent works include Remapping the Sinophone: The Cultural Production of Chinese-Language Cinema in Singapore and Malaya Before and During the Cold War.

Moderator

Dr Foo Tee Tuan

Associate Professor

Director, Centre for Chinese Studies

Singapore University of Social Sciences