This is many women’s dream job: To be paid to shop. How did you get into shopping for a living?
I started off as a management trainee at Tangs and picked up the ropes from a colleague who’s also a personal shopper.

What do you do as a personal shopper?
Normally we have customers filling in forms beforehand, telling us what they want. They will come down when they are free and look through our picks before deciding.

Do you literally spend every working hour shopping?
I do shop in town to check out the latest fashion trends and products to keep myself updated, besides being a personal shopper at Tangs. But there are also other aspects like stock and inventory management.

So are you a shopaholic?
Definitely, yes. I love shopping!

What are the items you are usually asked to buy?
Usually its fashion items—bags, clothes, shoes and fashion accessories.

How do you know that you have good taste or what if your clients have bad taste?
I think the issue is when clients do not know how to match clothes well or properly, not that they have bad taste.

Ever had to make purchases for stuff your clients find too embarrassing to buy themselves?
Only for men buying lingerie for their partners. Normally it’s done very fast because they already know what they want—brand, color, size and style.

What’s the most money you’ve ever been asked to spend in one shopping spree?
I once had a customer who spent $7,000.

What happens if you buy the wrong stuff for your clients? Any bad experiences?
No. We don’t force our opinions on them but suggest or recommend items and see if they will buy. Normally they are quite assertive already and have their own style.

Ever need to ask for help with carrying all the bags?
Most definitely.

Do you shop for yourself on the weekends?
Yes. But sometimes I have to work on weekends, and so I shop on weekdays.

OK, first off, what is Shylock like in your opinion?
Shylock is a Jewish man living in a Christian world where he is given no respect for his profession, his religion or traditions.

Do you think Shylock is a villain who is just out for revenge, or a victim of anti-Semitism?
Shylock certainly has villainous intentions—he wants to murder someone because that someone owes him money. It is his way of getting revenge on the society that has marginalized him. But it is his Jewness which makes people despise him, so in that sense he is a victim of anti-Semitism.

What is Tubal like?
We know so little about Tubal from Shakespeare’s text. Only that he is also a Jew, wealthy, and a moneylender.

Tubal has only eight lines in The Merchant of Venice. From what sources do you derive help to develop the character of Tubal for impersonation?
Much of the Tubal in my play is invented. I make him an “everyman” character who represents his race and can speak for his friend, Shylock. He is also a comic storyteller, so I use him to amuse the audience as well.

How is Tubal crucial to Shylock?
He is Shylock’s only friend, and the only other Jewish man in all of Shakespeare. The only man who really talks “to” Shylock and not “at” him. In my play, he gives Shylock’s point of view of the whole situation.

Some plays that draw inspiration from The Merchant of Venice do away with Tubal altogether. What do you think Shylock would be without him?
The play would be poorer without Tubal, and for very practical reasons. He brings crucial information to Shylock. Without him, Shylock would be even more isolated than he is, which would change the balance of the play quite crucially.

What are the obstacles you’ve faced when recreating a play from the viewpoint of a minor character?
You have to be more inventive than with a major character, but you can speculate and have more fun with a character that has so little to say in Shakespeare’s original play.

By recreating an entire play from the perspective of a trivial character, you’ve given the limelight to someone most people would have neglected. How do you think this will change the way the audience interprets a play?
I hope people will find it an original and entertaining approach. Most people identify with the “little guy” and he makes a good guide through the evening. People may not change their mind about Shylock and The Merchant of Venice but at least they will be stimulated to think about it.

Well, what is your opinion towards the continuous conflicts between the Jews and the Christians in Israel?
It is a tragedy, like all such conflicts. When I performed this play in Israel, many of my Jewish audience drew the parallel between Shylock’s demonisation and the plight of their Palestinian neighbors.

Any hopes for Shylock?
After Singapore, the play goes on to Aspen, Colarado (so I’ll need a big change of wardrobe), then on to the Bermuda Festival (so the shorts can come back out!). Then I will tour the UK in spring. Last year, a book I wrote about my journeys with the play was published (A Case For Shylock—Around The World With Shakespeare’s Jew) and now I am working on the sequel. I’m looking forward to writing the chapter on my experiences in Singapore!

What is your current state of mind?
I am pretty relaxed, just soaking up the atmosphere of my current holiday mood.

What did you want to be when you grew up?
I’ve always wanted to be a singer.

What is your biggest achievement to date?
Just successfully launching Get Lifted. It’s been really exciting so far, and I am really happy with how things are going.

What inspires you?
Music is the thing that really inspires me, first as just a listener, and now also as someone in a privileged position to perform and make the music. It’s inspiring and humbling to be able to do something that just feels right.

What personal trait do you appreciate the most in others?
I definitely like ambitious and hard working people. People with spirit and kindness also make me happy.

Do you have a cause or do you support one?
I support Aids research and helping the needy.

Which person living or dead do you admire most and would like to invite for dinner?
Bill Clinton. He just seems like a really intelligent guy and would be good company.

What are you reading?
The World Is Flat by Thomas Friedman.

How do you spend your Sunday mornings?
I rest a lot, exercise and read. If I am away from home, I like to walk around the city or country that I am in to soak up the culture.

What is your idea of hell?
Being somewhere that I don’t wanna be.

What is your guilty pleasure?
Strip clubs.

What’s playing in your iPOD/Mp3/CD player?
Jeff Buckley, Kanye West and Fiona Apple.

What do you collect?
I don’t really collect anything.

Where would you like to live?
I am already living where I want to: New York City.

What is your favorite item of clothing?
I don’t have one, but a nice coat can really make a man look good.

What about you scares others?
They shouldn’t be scared of me; as I really am not a scary guy. (Laughs)

If you had to play a character in a movie, which movie and which character?
Right now I am into action movies, so if I had to pick one character, it would be Will Smith in Bad Boys.

What did you believe at 18 that you wish you still believed now?
Back then I thought that I knew everything that there is to know about the world; so I guess, yeah, I still want to believe that.

What is the one thing that you would change about the world if given the chance?
End poverty.

11:20am Telok Ayer Street
Huss, Self Employed, 45

11.30am Ann Siang Road
Ann Kositchotitana, Proprietor of Front Row, 30

11.45am Club Street
Hazel Albreschi, Business Development Manager, 32
Andre Hendrata, Marketing Executive, 25

11.50am Amoy Street
Jeremy Tang, Navy, 29

12:28pm Raffles Place
William, Engineer, 28

       12:40pm Boat Quay
Sophi, Export Sales Manager, 23

12:59pm Standard Chartered Building
Lesa, Consultant, 28

 1:20pm East Coast Park
Adeline, Student, 20

1:24pm East Coast Park
Gerald, Student, 19

 1:26pm East Coast Park
Alex, Student 20

1:28pm East Coast Park
Razi, Student, 19

 1:29pm East Coast Park
Fatin, Student, 17

1:45pm East Coast Park
Hiu Maan, Student, 17

  1:48pm East Coast Park
Azhar, Student, 22

1:34pm Suntec City
Eunice, Account Executive, 24

1:39pm Suntec City
Rubani, Student, 18

1:40pm Suntec City
Kate, Student, 16
Mary, Travel Agent, 52
Rosie, Student, 18

2:09pm Stanley Street
Ashreen, Barrista, 17
Sha, Barrista, 24

2:11pm Stanley Street
Wei Quan, Barrista, 24

 2:45pm Novena Square
Joshua, Branch Manager, 35

2:52pm Novena Square
Sumila, Manager, 37

3:02pm United Square
Karen, Unemployed, 30

     3:06pm United Square
Najiv, Part-Time Sales, 25

3:07pm United Square
Amar, Product Advisor, 18

3:14pm United Square
Eliynoi, Interior Ddesigner, 28
Dave, Interior Ddesigner, 27

4:18pm Ngee Ann City

My father was a black baseball player. My mother was the beautiful daughter in a wealthy family. Their parents opposed the marriage, but they believed in the power of love. I grew up in a home where we learned love was more important than anything else, except music.

Throughout my childhood, we were poor. It didn’t matter much to me—singing was free, and I was always surrounded by songs. I knew everyone in our neighborhood by the sound of their voices in the streets. I’d listen from the window.

China was one of my recent stops in Asia. I remember loving the food, but the chopsticks weren’t easy to use.

There were Chinese people in Havana. One of them owned a fantastic Chinese restaurant that all Americans ate at.

I always miss home while I’m on tour, but travel has been in my blood all my life. I grew up loving home but always wanting to see the world.

I stay strong on tour because I’m charged by the Cuban sunshine. While I’m at home, I soak it up until it fills my bones. I’m like a little sunshine battery—I never get cold.

When I travel, I look at the audiences. People who are possessed by music are never strangers to each other.

Music is a message. I’ve never worried about whether or not people can understand words sung in Spanish. Feelings are much more universal than that.

I like music made by people who have little else. The poorest people are usually the richest in music. Simple honest music can be made by anyone, and it’s always better than the expensive stuff.

I like to stay current. When I’m at home, I spend hours watching music videos and broadcast performances. I’m sure that their influences sneak into my own performances, like little mice.

There are so many conditions for music. What’s popular? What rhythms can people dance to? Are the instruments in tune with each other? But the most important thing is a human voice. We all have our own, and they all can be beautiful.

I can’t resist listening to music from other cultures. As a dancer, I’m always entranced by seeing the many steps of the world. I wish I knew the moves for all of them.

I’ve had a long life. But as you can see, I’ve never stopped moving. Life hasn’t felt like different stages to me. No, everything has flowed from the very beginning, which I’d say was me as a young girl, singing as I walked down the street. I always sang loud enough for everyone to hear.

What is a traveling gourmet? Isn’t it just another way to describe a greedy traveler?
I travel the world to look for good food and wine, and write articles for various magazines. There’s a misconception about the difference between a gourmet and a gourmand. A gourmet appreciates and savors fine food and wine, not necessarily in huge amounts, but a gourmand is a glutton!

So how do you get people to pay you to travel and eat?
Luckily, I am quite well known today. Many governments and even top five-star hotels invite and sponsor me.

What qualifies you to distinguish good food from bad?
I believe one must be true to one’s taste buds, and I am a trained chef as well. I have had special training by top chefs and masters, and at CIA.

Are you a special agent or something?
CIA is the Culinary Institute of America.

What is one unique dish you remember?
Well, there is the witchetty grub from Australia. It is like a fat worm about the size of your finger, eaten raw or soaked in garlic. You bite the head off then eat the rest of the body. The texture is like cream cheese, and it tastes quite bland.

Ever had to eat something you strongly object to, like an endangered animal?
I try not to eat endangered animals. I won’t order them.

What’s the worst food you’ve tried?
The worst food I had was when I was at this restaurant in Singapore that claimed to serve French food, but it was nothing like that. And my friends and relatives had food poisoning after dining there.

Do you take up health insurance as a precaution against food poisoning?
No, I just have normal insurance. Maybe I should look into that.

How does turning vegetarian appeal to you?
It’s not very appealing to me, because I like all types of food and, as a traveling gourmet, if I was to be completely vegetarian, it would be very difficult.

What do you do about your calorie intake and your figure?
I exercise a lot. I do brisk walking, jogging, swimming and ballet. As you can see, I am not that bad, thank you.