Why May Is A Great Month If You're An Arts Lover
Get ready for crowded arts events calendar in Singapore from May to July.
By Ong Sor Fern,
May will see an onslaught with no fewer than five festivals, including the Esplanade’s Flipside, the Asian Festival of Children’s Content and the Gallery Children’s Biennale. The Singapore HeritageFest has already kicked off this week while the Singapore International Festival of Arts is gearing up for the end of the month.
As expected, many programmes, such as Singapore Ballet’s Peter & Blue’s Birthday Party 2023, are targeted at children and families because of the upcoming June school holidays, but there are also plenty of choices for teenagers and young adults. The Asian Film Archive, for example, has a slate of films focusing on young people and politics in its Coming Of Rage: Asian Youth And Politics On Screen from June 2 to 23. Ahead, a brief sampler of what to expect.
Where: National Gallery Singapore, 1 St Andrew’s Road
When: May 4-Sep 17, 10am to 7pm daily
Admission: Free
Following the successful Nam June Paik: The Future is Now exhibition in late 2021 that covered the influential practice of the eponymous South Korean artist (aka the godfather of video art), the National Gallery Singapore is set to explore the genre further with its latest show. Titled See Me, See You: Early Video Installation of Southeast Asia, the exhibition is a two-part series that delves into the pivotal moments when video installation first emerged in the region starting from the ’80s.
The first instalment of this show features five pioneering Southeast Asian artists (Johnny Manahan, Apinan Poshyananda, Baharudin Mohd Arus and Chng Nai Wee) who broke through conventional art forms that were prevalent at that time (such as painting and sculpture). These artists helped to birth a new form of art through experiments and interdisciplinary approaches, combining installation, performance, and audience participation with video.
To enable visitors to experience these works, the Gallery has commissioned the recreation of several of these artworks, many of which have been forgotten and have not been exhibited for decades. The second part of this monumental exhibition is slated to take place from Oct 13 this year till February 4, 2024, and will feature artists Heri Dono, Hasnul Saidon, Ray Langenbach, Vincent Leow and Krisna Murti.
Where: Starch, #02-11 Tag A Building, 81 Tagore Lane
When: May 6-28, open from Fridays to Sundays from noon to 7pm. All other days are by appointment
Admission: Free
The idea of masculinity has long been stagnant and rigidly defined, but a new show titled Can You Show Me Your Drawer Of Drawers? is aiming to present a varied spectrum of masculine identities who are diverse in ethnicity, upbringing and social class in Singapore. A photography series created by image/film director, stylist and editorial writer Nicholas See and image maker and creative director Aaditya Sundar, the show aims to display a raw and unfiltered look into the lives of 15 male-identifying individuals in Singapore.
“It was important that the images present the male body beyond how it’s normally portrayed in the media,” says Aaditya in an interview with FEMALE last year on this project. “I think the beauty of the perception of masculinity now is that it’s ever-changing – something that is only formed by life experiences and is unique to each individual.”
Where: National Design Centre, 111 Middle Road
When: May 18-Aug 26, 9am to 9pm daily
Admission: Free
What: Whether you pronounce it “jif” or “gif”, those animated creations have become part of electronic missives, sometimes even taking over text itself. Celebrate those moving pixels in this exhibition organised by creative platform Eyeyah!, which brings together multimedia creations by more than 40 gif creators. Eyeyah!’s education lead Tanya Wilson Chua says organisers are expecting more than 30,000 visitors to the festival, which was founded in 2017. Look out for workshops which will teach kids to make gifs as well as learn design thinking through gifs.
Where: Esplanade – Theatres on the Bay, 1 Esplanade Drive
When: May 26-June 4, various timings
Admission: Free and paid (tickets from $30)
What: Giant seagulls invade the waterfront. The Esplanade’s Flipside festival has traditionally been the fun, family-friendly counterpoint to the Singapore International Festival of Arts. It has evolved over the years to offer plenty of free acts at the DBS Foundation Outdoor Theatre, and this year, circus and aerial acts are back in full force. Besides the giant seagulls of Snuff Puppets, watch out for home-grown Bornfire Circus’ Forget Me Not and Aerial Open Stage with 13 aerialists. Audiences of all ages will definitely get a kick out of Bakeke (Bucket), where a lone performer interacts with a lot of buckets. There are treats, too, for adult fans of puppetry with two theatre offerings. Chimpanzee (pictured) is a puppet play telling the moving story of an ape raised like a human child in a family, while The Old Trout Puppet Workshop offers a much sillier show with Famous Puppet Death Scenes.
Where: Marina Bay area
When: June 1-25, 7:30pm to 11pm daily, with extended hours to midnight on Fridays and Saturdays
Admission: Free and paid (tickets at $5)
What: This popular sustainable light festival is adding two new locations this year – South Beach and Millenia Walk. The 14 installations follow the theme, A New Wave, and are anchored in the colour blue. Sydney-based art collective Amigo & Amigo’s Trumpet Flowers is likely to be a social media hit. This installation of oversized flowers, inspired by old-school gramophones, will burst into song, courtesy of a commissioned musical score by Otis Studio played by Sydney’s finest jazz musicians. Visitors can also flex their musical muscles by “playing” these towering blooms using interactive keys. The festival is organised by the Urban Redevelopment Authority and presented by DBS.
Where: KC Arts Centre, 20 Merbau Road
When: June 1-11, various timings
Admission: From $65
What: The claim of “authentic” is backed up by the fact that this show is produced by Teatro Real – The Royal Opera of Madrid in partnership with events promoter Fever. Award-winning dancer and teacher Paula Rodriguez, who performs regularly at Madrid’s famed Cardamomo flamenco venue, headlines the 65-minute live show. She will be accompanied by dancer Jose Escarpin, singers Jonathan Reyes and Jose del Calli, guitarist Antonio Jimenez and percussionist Juan Amaya Amador El Cafelito.
Where: Singtel Waterfront Theatre, 1 Esplanade Drive
When: June 2-18, various timings
Admission: From $65
What: American playwright John Patrick Shanley’s play gets a staging by Pangdemonium. Parish priest Father Flynn (Jason Godfrey) takes a 12-year-old student under his wing, but Sister Aloysius (Neo Swee Lin, pictured), the stern school principal, suspects his motives. A naive young sister gets caught in the middle when accusations escalate in this study of faith and truth. Expect powerhouse performances from the cast, which includes Sharon Frese and Ching Shu Yi.
This article is adapted from a story that first appeared in The Straits Times. Additional reporting by Keng Yang Shuen