spell#7 was founded in 1997 by Kaylene Tan and Paul Rae. Since their first performance, ¡apocalypso! at The Substation, they have gone on to make eleven further devised performances, participating along the way in the Singapore Arts Festival (twice) and, in 1999, working as Resident Artists at TheatreWorks.
At the heart of the company's work lies collaboration: between people, places, ideas and artistic forms. In addition to a small group of regular collaborators, spell#7 has worked with puppet makers, architects, designers, choreographers, composers, DJs and popular stand-up comedian Kumar (in Meena and Me, 1999).
In addition to conventional theatres, their performances have taken place in a night-club (Bud, 1999), a converted convent (Walk with Me and Be Perfect, 1998), and an office complex (Spring Awakening, 1999).
In 2000, they collaborated with a British group, Bodies in Flight to make the web-performance-event Double Happiness, which premiered in Singapore, before going on to tour several cutting edge festivals in England.
Last year, the company has been granted arts housing by the National Arts Council in Little India. Since then, the group has made three original performances - 7x7: spell#7 remixed, Kinda' Hot (a performance tour of Little India) and Various Gangsters: the opening commission for The Substation's Septfest 2002.
The company have frequently investigated the use of different digital media on-stage, with live-video relay, enhanced and processed images, digital animation, electronic soundscapes and accompanying websites and CD-Roms.
The Year Of Living Digitally is an extension of this sustained exploration of digital media in performance and their interest in the issues raised by working (and living) with technology in their daily lives. They are deeply committed to broadening their notion of 'collaboration' into the organizing of a festival and the developing of commissions for local artists. spell#7 hopes to contribute to the culture of digital arts, new media and artistic experimentation in Singapore.
