American comedian Sammy Obeid has accused Singaporean authorities of trying to censor his stand-up show after his performance scheduled for Sunday was cancelled, but officials say the permit was rejected because the application was lodged too late.
The agency, however, denied requesting any changes and said the application was submitted too close to the show date to be processed.
Obeid, who is Lebanese-Palestinian American, said in his post that putting on a stand-up comedy show in Singapore was “extremely difficult” and that he had to submit his script for approval, but he was happy to follow the process for his more than 1,000 fans in the city state.
In Singapore, an arts entertainment licence is required for public performances, including theatre, dance, art exhibitions, literary readings and stand-up comedy. IMDA has the power to request alterations to scripts before they are approved.
Obeid said he was well aware his script, which was almost entirely focused on the war in Gaza, was unlikely to get approval and he was willing to tone down the material. He was scheduled to perform at the Victoria Theatre.
