J[our]ney - 4 Short Stories by Joel Tan

Alice tapped her feet nervously in the quiet underground station at Outram Park. It was late, and no one else was there. Ordinarily she would have taken a taxi cab home from work, since it was on the company dime, as was her taxi to work every morning. Being secretary to Mr. Richard came with certain perks. Most of the office girls thought it so glamorous, the way she’d stroll past them into her black and yellow taxi every evening at six o’clock. But times, Mr. Richard had said this morning with an apologetic British shrug, are getting leaner. And so it was announced after lunch today that the transport budget would be cut for everyone except key management, effective immediately.

This story is read by Brendon Fernandez.

Show Notes

Alice tapped her feet nervously in the quiet underground station at Outram Park. It was late, and no one else was there. Ordinarily she would have taken a taxi cab home from work, since it was on the company dime, as was her taxi to work every morning. Being secretary to Mr. Richard came with certain perks. Most of the office girls thought it so glamorous, the way she’d stroll past them into her black and yellow taxi every evening at six o’clock. But times, Mr. Richard had said this morning with an apologetic British shrug, are getting leaner. And so it was announced after lunch today that the transport budget would be cut for everyone except key management, effective immediately.

This story is read by Brendon Fernandez.

What is J[our]ney - 4 Short Stories by Joel Tan?

J[our]ney is an original all-Singaporean digitally presented production exploring an essential component of every Singaporean’s life - the Mass Rapid Transit (MRT) commute. We will be presenting 4 newly commissioned short stories by Singaporean writer Joel Tan paired with newly commissioned pieces by 4 Singaporean composers. The music will be performed by K口U and stories told by Brendon Fernandez.

In this collection of four short stories, we follow different rides along the East West line across 1987, 2015, 2025, and 2087. Introspective and ruminating, the stories track the changing urban and social landscape of Singapore, and plot a speculative roadmap for the near and distant future.