by Adeline Chia, Arts Reporter

Shanghainese models, clad in exquisite lingerie by Beijing label Aimer, amble languidly through The Arts House. They strike poses and compose pretty pictures.

The audience gets to wine and dine on a parade of dishes cooked by five top Asian chefs.

The inspiration for this food and fashion spectacle? The works of French philosopher and historian Michel Foucault, who theorised about topics such as madness, the prison system and human sexuality.

It seems like an unlikely marriage of frivolity and intellect, but the show's artistic director, Jeremiah Choy, says it is possible do 'philosophy in fashion through theatre'.

The 47-year-old is orchestrating Jing (Chinese for 'quietness' or 'tranquillity'), which opens Asia On The Edge, a four-day festival celebrating Asian arts, fashion, food and culture. The fashion show runs at The Arts House this weekend.

One of the philosophical concepts that will be explored include the many perspectives involved in a fashion show.

Says Choy: 'When models walk past us, are we looking at the lingerie or them? Are the models looking at us looking at them?'

On whether there was a contradiction between high and low brow in the show, the bachelor says: 'There is no contradiction. It is up to the audience how they want to access it. Do you want to watch a show attentively or do you want to have a good time?

'Both are possible. If you want a glass of wine - and you can refill it as many times as you want - you can stay in a corner and do that.'

He should know. He runs events company Orangedot Productions, and has over 10 years of experience creating fashion shows, theatre pieces and managing events by corporations and government agencies.

He wrote and directed A Labour Of Love, a musical commissioned by the NTUC for the May Day rally in 2007. He is also the curator of the shows that entertained the delegates from 2006 International Monetary Fund World Bank meetings in Singapore.

The second of three children of a carpenter and a seamstress, he did not start his career in showbusiness but in law.

He was a lawyer by day but moonlighted as an actor at night. He quit his job and went full-time into showbusiness in 1997. He starred in major TheatreWorks plays such as Lear, The Descendants Of The Eunuch Admiral and Spirits.

In 2002, he directed the critically acclaimed Machine for TheatreWorks, and was nominated for Best Director in the Life! Theatre Awards.

Acting, choreographing, directing - is there anything he enjoys most?

He says: 'I enjoy everything because I enjoy creating. I love connecting with people.'

1 You are among a batch of law students - director Ong Keng Sen, actress Claire Wong, director Ivan Heng, playwright Eleanor Wong - in the 1980s who were arts practitioners. What were those days in the National University of Singapore like?

In law school, I was very active in hostel life and I barely went to school. There were plenty of opportunities to perform. There was Starburst, Kent Ridge Hall's annual concerts. I was also a back-up dancer for singer Eric Moo.

After I graduated, I performed in Beauty World directed by Keng Sen in 1988. I think that was where a lot of us caught the acting bug. About 80 per cent of the actors in the 1988 production went professional. They included Tan Kheng Hua, Jacintha Abisheganaden, Ivan Heng and Koh Chieng Mun.

2 How has being a lawyer helped your career in the arts?

People sometimes say: 'Oh, it's so sayang, you left law after so many years of studying.' But being a lawyer helps me as an artist because law provides me with a logical reading of things.

I sometimes let slip the fact I used to be a practising lawyer and people will suddenly give you respect. I want to say, 'But it's got nothing to do with my art!' Sad to say, I have to use this tactic sometimes.

3 What made you quit your job as a lawyer to join the arts in 1997?

I couldn't take no-pay leave for two years because I was acting in Lear, which was going to tour. I was 36 and I thought: 'If I don't do this now, I will never do it.' So I quit my job as a lawyer, and two years of leave became 12.

4 You have done a range of shows, from highly artistic and intellectual pieces to really commercial ones, such as product launches. Do you ever feel like you are selling out?

No. To me, artistic and commercial exist on a continuum. They are not mutually exclusive. A lot of actors pooh-pooh commercial shows but it is where they derive the most income. When you have commercial work, it doesn't mean you have no artistic integrity. Nothing is hastily put together, be it a chi-chi card launch or a road show for NTUC. There are still one to two months of rehearsals.

5 There seems to be a lot going on in Jing. What advice do you have for the audience on how to handle it?

I think Singaporeans don't know how to enjoy site-specific theatre. They are kiasu, greedy creatures and they have to see everything. My advice is: Find a good spot and stay there and watch. Let everything wash over you.

6 What do you do to relax?

I enjoy not sleeping at all on weekends, and watching all the videos that I've bought or reading books. Weekends are my me-time.

I enjoy small dinner parties with friends. I don't like to party too late because I'm a day person. I wake up at 7am and by 11pm I'm useless. When I go on holiday, I'm the one cooking breakfast for everyone.

7 What is your pet peeve?

Singaporeans have no sense of space. There is always someone knocking into you or shoving you. I hate crowds. My perfect bedroom would be a huge empty warehouse, with my bed in a corner.

8 Complete this sentence. If I could live my life all over again, I would...

Become a fashion designer because I love textiles and I love to sew. Give me a piece of cloth and I can drape it beautifully around you. You can wear it to a function.

chiahta@sph.com.sg

This article was first published in The Straits Times.