Cyril Wong
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| Born: | June 27, 1977 (age 29) Singapore |
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| Occupation: | Writer/Poet |
| Nationality: | Singaporean |
| Website: | http://www.cyrilwong.com |
Cyril Wong (b. 1977) is the author of five published collections of poetry in Singapore.
His poems have appeared in journals around the world, including Atlanta Review, Fulcrum 3, Poetry International, Dimsum, Poetry New Zealand, Wascana Review and the W.W. Norton & Co. anthology, Contemporary Voices from the East (forthcoming, 2007). He was a featured poet at the Edinburgh International Book Festival (UK), the Hong Kong International Literary Festival, the Queensland Poetry Festival (Brisbane, Australia) and the Singapore Writers' Festival. His poems have been praised by American poet, Cole Swensen, as being "seeds of light that believe in life – so much so that they can look at it honestly."
His poems have been adapted to dance, drama, film and music. These collaborations have been presented in various countries, including the 27th Bali Arts Festival and the Magdalena International Festival of Women in Contemporary Theatre (USA, 2005). TIME (Aug 19-25, 2003) described, "Existence" a play based on Cyril's poems by The Fun Stage, as portraying "the love of two young Singaporean men for each other as doomed," as well as how "being accepted by mainstream society doesn't mean that all the problems faced by homosexuals will go away."
Cyril Wong is openly gay, and is one of the few figures in the Singapore literature scene to have come out. He lives with his life-partner, Sheo S Rai, and singer/conductor, Wilson Goh, in Singapore. He was also a countertenor with early-music ensemble, Musica Obscura and he has sung with Singaporean group, The Singers Vocal Ensemble.
[edit] Books
- Excess Baggage and Claim, Co-authored with Terry Jaensch (Transit Lounge, 2007) ISBN 9780975022856
- Like A Seed With Its Singular Purpose (Firstfruits, 2006) ISBN 9810559305
- Unmarked Treasure (Firstfruits, 2004) ISBN 981050408X
- Below: Absence (Firstfruits, 2002) ISBN 9810475926
- The End of His Orbit (Firstfruits, 2001) ISBN 9810443293
- Squatting Quietly (Firstfruits, 2000) ISBN 981042826X
[edit] Awards
- Singapore Literature Prize (2006)
- National Arts Council's Young Artist Award (Singapore, 2005)
- Golden Point Award (Singapore, 2004)
- Potent Prose Ax Prize (USA, 2002)
[edit] External links
SOFTBLOW Poetry Journal: [1]
"Poetry and the Renaissance Machine", Harvard Asia Quarterly: [2]
Audio recordings on The Cortland Review: [3]
Read poems on The Drunken Boat: [4]
Read poem on the Quarterly Literary Review Singapore: [5]
Read poem on Cordite: [6]
Read poem on Lodestar Quarterly: [7]
Read poem on hutt: [8]
Read short-story on The Daily Star: [9]
Listen to radio interview on ARTS Alive: [10]
