CNA938 Rewind - A Letter to Myself: How Theophilus Kwek's poetry makes space for different voices to be heard
Theophilus Kwek is an accomplished young poet whose fifth and latest collection of poetry is entitled "Commonwealth", which is a literary homecoming of sorts. A key theme in Theophilus' work is the tension between place and displacement. In this conversation, he tells us why this theme has deeply personal roots in the old neighbourhood in which he grew up (Commonwealth, of course), and how his maturing as a writer has helped him understand the value of making space in his poetry for voices other than his own. Among his achievements, Theophilus been featured on a Forbes' 30-Under-30 list, and is the youngest and only Singaporean recipient of the prestigious Cikada poetry prize.