Singapore Boy's birth was completely accidental...
He was first conceived for Hokkien mee and owes his existence to the warm reception from his fellow Singaporeans.
In July 1996, ACTION Theatre's artistic director Ekachai Uekrongtham asked Hossan to do an opening act for Ovidia Yu's play called Hokkien Mee, staged as a fund-raising event in aid of the Buiding Fund for No. 42 Waterloo Street. The 10-minute stand-up comedy routine turned out to be a surprise hit with the audience. Encouraged by the response, Ekachai challenged Hossan to present a full-act stand-up comedy - all on his own. Nobody knew why Hossan said yes but he did and Singapore Boy was born - with the help from Edmund Tan, the show's writer plus additional ideas from Ovidia Yu, Toh Paik Choo and Desmond Sim.
Premiered on 30 January 1997 at Jubilee Hall, Singapore Boy became the first mainstream full-act stand-up comedy performed by a Singaporean comedian. It played to packed houses to everybody's surprise and proved that Singaporeans love a good laugh - minus the crudity and below-the-belt antics.
Now Singapore Boy is back - with a new drink to boot! Will he be back? Only the laughter will tell. (Giggles and chuckles will also be counted.)
