G.T. Lye

Baba G.T. Lye is a doyen of Peranakan theatre. He has acted in and written Peranakan stage plays for the last four decades. He has been a wayang Peranakan practitioner since his first foray into theatre in 1984 in Felix Chia’s Pileh Menantu, staged during the Singapore Arts Festival. The play was a landmark in wayang Peranakan which sparked a revival of Peranakan theatre. Before that, no Peranakan play had been staged in Singapore since the 1960s.

In his next stage appearance in 1985, he performed in a female role under the stage name “G.T. Lye”. He played the Peranakan matriarch for the first time – a character that would shape and define his career in Peranakan theatre.

G.T. has not only starred in 23 wayang Peranakan plays but has also contributed to Peranakan theatre as a scriptwriter, co-director, dialogue coach and mentor to young actors. The bulk of his performances were in plays staged by the Gunong Sayang Association. There is no other living wayang Peranakan actor who has displayed mastery of the art form as he has.

In 2020, G.T. was recognised as a Steward of Singapore’s Intangible Cultural Heritage by the National Heritage Board.

Upcoming Work

Baba G.T. Lye has completed a wayang Peranakan podcast series that will debut in 2023/2024. He will star in the remake of Felix Chia’s Mari Kita Main Wayang at the Esplanade in November 2023. He will also reprise his role in Tak Sangkah Sangkah Cempedak Menjadi Nangka (Unexpected) to be staged in Melaka in late November 2023. He is also involved in a modern play with Peranakan elements to be staged in 2025.

Steward of Intangible Cultural Heritage Award

In 2020, Baba G.T. Lye was recognised by the National Heritage Board, Singapore as a Steward of Intangible Cultural Heritage. The Award recognises practitioners of intangible cultural heritage who are dedicated to the promotion and transmission of their practices, and have made outstanding contributions in their field.

Through his efforts, G.T. Lye’s deep cultural knowledge has been passed on to a new generation through his mentorship.

Ivan Heng, founder and artistic director of theatre company Wild Rice expressed appreciation for his commitment to nurturing future generations of artists and audiences through his interviews, workshops and rehearsals.

Similarly, Alvin Teo, president of the Gunong Sayang Association, credited G.T.’s in-depth knowledge of Peranakan culture and practices as integral to recreating wayang Peranakan.

John Teo, former General Manager of the Peranakan Museum and current Deputy Director of Research at the National Heritage Board, summed up his accomplishments. “Unlike Peranakans of (the post-independence) generation, who are now trying to rediscover aspects of our heritage, he has lived the culture. His mentorship and guidance have been invaluable assets to the museum and its curators. In our collective efforts to preserve Singapore’s intangible cultural heritage, G.T. is one of last remaining authorities, an irreplaceable expository agent of the customs, traditions and practices of a bygone era.”