SINGAPORE - This year marks a new chapter for local arts group TheatreWorks, as it gets a new name and a familiar face rejoins the company.

After a decade, theatre veteran Ong Keng Sen, 56, has resumed the role of artistic director at the arts company, now known as T:>Works.

He took a sabbatical to helm the Singapore International Festival of Arts from 2014 to 2017 and completed his PhD in performance studies at the Tisch School of the Arts at New York University in September last year.

Ong's next mission is to steer T:>Works - read as TWorks - into a new decade, focusing on thought leadership in the arts, even as the company navigates the challenges of the coronavirus pandemic.

Upcoming programmes include two virtual events. There will be a curators training course, titled Curating No-thing, from May to June. This comprises a series of four lectures, which are open to the public and led by Ong over video conferencing platform Zoom.

There will also be virtual consultation and clinic sessions for a smaller group of participants. The programme is held under the company's Curators Academy, which Ong founded in 2018.

"Many artists, writers, producers and cultural workers are already curating in their daily work, but there is little reflection space for them to evaluate what curating is, how to curate, and for whom they should be curating," said Ong.

The lectures cover topics such as creating worlds, ethical generosity, rethinking value, as well as small actions and listening. They will be held on May 19, 21, 26 and 28.

The consultation and clinic sessions will be held on June 9, 11, 16 and 18.

Registration starts on May 1. Send an e-mail to mervyn.TWorks @ gmail.com or visit the website for more information.

From July 15 to Aug 2, the arts company will also present its second edition of N.O.W. (Not Ordinary Work), a festival created and developed entirely by women. Actress and arts educator Noorlinah Mohamed helms the virtual festival as its artistic director.

More details about the festival will be released in June.

In a video conference with reporters on Thursday (April 30), Ong said: "Coming back during the Covid-19 pandemic is a special challenge. However, I believe it galvanises our resolve to continue creating during these difficult times."

Ong added that it is not a time to take a hiatus as it is necessary to prepare for the new normal beyond the pandemic.

"Beyond Covid-19, we as a community of arts audiences and artists need to ask: 'When is human intimacy necessary for us to make sense of our lives? When do we need to stand in front of a painting, when information from the web is no longer sufficient experience?'"

He adds: "At this crucial time, I am convinced that there is a relevant role for independent and alternative thinking and doing in Singapore, and that T:>Works as a pioneering thought leader in the global arts will be able to crystallise some directions of how to create and live in the new world."

Looking ahead, the company will focus on pioneering thought leadership in the arts, especially in trans-disciplinary, trans-cultural, and inclusive processes.

It aims to have an educational perspective with research and discourse contextualising the histories, contemporary experiences and art practices of South-east Asia.

It will also investigate the current importance of being located in Singapore through different creative expressions in the public sphere.

Meanwhile, the arts company's new name is inspired by the early days of computing and the DOS (Disk Operating System). Designed by T:>Works chairman Heman Chong, it is a nod to the digital nature of performance amid the pandemic.

Chong, who became the group's chairman on April 1, is the first visual artist to chair the company since it was established in 1985.

The group's name also aims to convey the message that digitalisation is more than just about technology as the analogue, or the body, is still relevant - similarly, the performance of the future will involve the integration of live presence and the virtual, said Ong.

"Our works have moved beyond theatre, into visual arts, films, choreography, sound works, publishing, residencies and processes. Finally, the new visual identity reminds us of the user of a system or our audiences. Early computation put the user and open access back into the centre."