Singapore’s nightlife is an exciting and thrilling place to be! If you’re not out for supper, you could visit the Night Safari, go Cosmic Bowling, explore Jewel Changi Airport after hours and much more. ? And if you’re looking for more things to do at night in Singapore and somewhere to enjoy the local arts and culture scene when the sun goes down, Singapore Night Festival 2022 is making a comeback this August after a two-year long hiatus! HHWT went for the media preview, and here are some exhibits we think you should check out!
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This year, the festival will take place at Bras Basah Bugis (BBB) precinct from 19 to 27 August from 7:30PM to 12AM - the perfect time for night owls to spread their wings and have some fun. ? Returning for its 13th edition, the festival will bring the precinct to life with local artists and the community reimagining the precinct in a whole new light.
The festival will centre around 55 unique experiences that will shed light (no pun intended) on lesser-known stories of Singapore’s multi-dimensional arts and heritage scene. There will be a wide variety of interactive installations, including six projection mapping installations, 14 Night Lights installations, and many other performances, interactive programs, and food and retail options! ✨
Credit: Tunnel Graffiti by Lynette Quek
Cathay Hotel: The Curse of the Missing Red Shoe by Vertical Submarine
There will be more than 30 performances by performing arts groups for you to enjoy this year. ? And if you love hands-on experience, you can’t miss Cathay Hotel: The Curse Of The Missing Shoe. In this immersive theatre performance, you’ll be encouraged to get in on the thrill of solving a mystery in a recreation of the Cathay Hotel that’s even designed to match the scale of the original! The highlight act tells a tale of two lovers more than 60 years ago who were separated by a mysterious curse. ? You can expect to have a close encounter with the nostalgic cinematic landscapes of Singapore’s post-war era as you revisit the origins of the characters by a stellar cast that includes Rebekah Sangeetha Dorai, Munah Bagharib, Rizman Putra and Andrew Marko, that have been long gone.
From left to right: Pontianak, Mat Bond, Mambo Girl, Orang Minyak
Some of the characters you can expect to meet include Mat Bond (a local take on the popular James Bond), Orang Minyak, Pontianak, Mambo Girl and ASP Latiff. As we stepped into the theatre, it almost feels like we've been transported back to yesteryears! Don't worry, Pontianak and Orang Minyak aren't as scary as they sound, in real life! ? This, however, is the only paid exhibition in the festival and will only be showing on 19, 20, 24, 25, 26 & 27 Aug. There are two show timings, 7.30pm and 8.45pm, with additional show at 10pm on Fridays and Saturdays. The performance lasts for an hour. It's located at Cathay Green (opposite of School of the Arts). Each ticket costs $33, and if you're bringing along more people, there's a special bundle package for 4, which costs $112. You can purchase your tickets via Klook.
Play with fun rice-shaped inflatables
We know many of us were taught to play with food, but at Fēcundus, you can play, squeeze and combine these inflatables representing rice kernels, rings and rice plants based on your own imagination ? Inspired by the meaning of “Bras Basah” or beras basa, which means “wet
rice”, Fēcundus creates a playground of larger-than-life inflatable structures for visitors to build a rice plant with or construct their own creations. The organic shapes, reminiscent of rice kernels, can be combined to resemble seeds, pods and buds, and plants growing and bustling into life on an artificial lawn! Just be prepared though, when your colleague suddenly throws a random inflatable at you .... ?
Venue: SMU Green (located near CC2 Bras Basah MRT station)
Listen into conversations at a coffeeshop
Sometimes, when we're walking through coffeeshops, you might have overheard something from a conversation, which could either surprise you or make you go, "wait, that's actually really relatable!". Here's what NOCTURNE: Conversations with Waterloo by Nhawfal Juma'at aims to show. The exhibit. presents two sculptures captured in a transient moment when a conversation is midway, overheard in a communal space like the coffeeshop; where possibilities of the discussion are limitless. The concept of conversation, a phenomenon that allows us to understand, contemplate and traverse the passage of time, is likened to nocturnes lighting up in our minds growing and expanding, similar to how plants respond to the sun in constant reincarnation and rebirth ? Some key vantage points for an amazing picture would definitely be from this angle! You can stand right in the middle of the sculptures (the pillar) for the shot!
Venue: Waterloo Centre
Bust out your dance moves to 80s disco music at a void deck
Time to boogie the night away to some classic Bee-Gees tunes at this discotheque located .... under a HDB block?? Join local dance performance company P7:1SMA (pronounced as Prisma) move through Waterloo centre with a roving performance celebrating the disco fever that once existed in the Bras Basah Bugis precinct's nightlife! Don't be afraid to dance along! The performance will only run on 19, 20, 26 & 27 Aug at these two timeslots: 8pm - 8.45pm and 9.30pm - 10.15pm. It's free admission, but do arrive at least 45 mins before the scheduled performances to register! ?
Venue: Waterloo Centre (walk downward to the left from NOCTURNE)
Watch a digital garden grow with living plant NFTS
Yes, it's exactly what you just read! TERRARIUM imagines a hybridised reality that ponders future possibilities for nature and
how technology could blur the lines between what’s living and what’s truly alive!
Step into an immersive garden landscape dreamt up by AUX Media Group in collaboration with lifestyle brand Binary Style, which will also be launching a special Bras Basah.Bugis precinct commission; have a picnic amidst the gorgeous paper flora creations by PAPERSYNTHESIS; examine how game engines and 3D modelling allow nature to thrive in the digital realm through a dynamic and interactive display by BIOS: Living NFTs where you can help a digital garden grow. It really blew our minds on how these digital plants still somehow reacts accordingly to the real-life situations simultaneously! When you stand closer to the plants, you can actually hear birds and other insects as well! ?
Don't forget to scan the QR code before you enter to get a better understanding of this cool exhibition!
Venue: National Design Centre
Run through 'paddy fields' in the city
Play 'Young and Beautiful' by Lana Del Rey as you take a stroll along Stamford Walkway, which is beautifully lighted by dried rice-like structures! Paddy Fields by FARM recalls the forgotten practice of drying cultivated rice along the banks of Sungei Brass Bassa (now Stamford Canal) in the early 19th-century. The area was close to the paddy fields that used to be located opposite today’s KK Women’s and Children’s Hospital. South Asian washermen and women also laundered clothes there, laying them out to dry on an adjacent open space. Using a palette of humble materials, this installation seeks to evoke the sentiments reminiscent of these activities from a bygone era. The lights itself aren't extremely bright, so do turn on your night mode to get those cool shots! ?
Venue: Stamford Walkway (near Stamford Clock Tower)
Spot rare adorable birds in the park
Simply put, it's super adorable! Inspired by the William Farquhar Collection of Natural History Drawings, tobyato bird pitstop is an artistic, inflatable representation of birds taking a breather in Fort Canning Park. Walk along the path and spot the rare sightings of birds resting within lush greenery. The collection of inflatable birds features migratory species recently spotted in the vicinity, such as the Grey and Purple Herons, the Violet Cuckoo and the White-rumped Shama. The larger-than-life artworks aim to highlight Singapore’s biodiversity and the myriad bird species that often go unnoticed within our small island nation. Learning from these birds taking pit stops to rest on their own migratory journeys, tobyato bird pitstop reminds us to slow down and rejuvenate ourselves in nature as well! Also, very cute ?
Venue: Canning Rise
Relive folklore stories from our childhood projected all over National Museum of Singapore
This by far was truly a personal favourite of mine. I've always heard about such projection mappings, but to actually see it in real life, I was simply wowed away! Experience a visual narrative of Singapore’s mythical origins and history dating back to the 14th century with Stories from Forbidden Hill, at the National Museum of Singapore. The projection showcase presents significant historical locations such as the wall carvings and royal bath at Fort Canning Park, as well as the legend of Badang, of whom the earliest record can be found in the Sejarah Melayu, an important record of Malay history!
Venue: National Museum of Singapore
See the past and present through glitches
Credit: Glitches of You by Amanda Tan
Glitches of You explores the notion of a multicultural modern identity in a dance of glitch art and fractured pixels, drawing from the artist’s personal history and experience, through her identity as product of mixed bloodlines and therefore of dual cultures.
Paired with soundscapes composed by local musician Intriguant, the projection embraces the Stamford Court clock tower and the hustle-bustle of a busy intersection. By manipulating archival material and the artist’s self-filmed footage in the Bras Basah.Bugis precinct, the artwork takes you on a visual journey through a fragmented landscape where the past meets the present! ?
Venue: Stamford Clock Tower
Take the ultra-worthy IG photo on these neon steps
We didn't manage to catch this installation, but we already know that many of you will be snapping up endless IG-worthy photos here! As nightfall approaches, Steps (2022) powers up to illuminate the National Museum of Singapore’s glass staircase in a welcoming white glow. The motion-responsive installation is activated by the presence and movement of visitors to materialise vibrant colour changes, inviting visitors to experience the energetic bond between themselves and their surrounding space ?
In line with the festival’s theme Rebirth, the artist creates an ephemeral, light-immersed space that invites interaction along the museum’s colonial facade. The installation’s participatory design employs light as a bridging element to reconnect visitors with their spatial environment and the traces they create within it! Do come early to avoid the crowds ?
Venue: Glass Staircase @ National Museum Singapore
Credit: Under My Tree Roof by Chloë Manasseh
The Fort Canning Park is already an iconic spot itself; in comes this unique installation that's simply a must to check out! Under My Tree Roof curves around the park’s iconic spiral staircase and beckons visitors to experience the dichotomy between the mural’s sheer scale and the intricacy of the constructed spaces it sits in as they transit through.
Situated under the Yellow Rain Tree, the spiral pathway will provide a place of respite from day to night as the colourful botanical forms come to life in the dark ?
Venue: Fort Canning Park
Other installations we think you should check out include the projection mapping at the National Archives of Singapore, CHIJMES and The Melting Pot projections on Stamford Clock Tower.
Here are some tips we think you should take note of before you go:
- Bring a bottle of water to keep yourself hydrated throughout the walk.
- Wear comfortable shoes!
- Come during the weekdays to get the best shots without a crowd!
- Come later in the night to get brighter shots!
If this sounds like something you’d love to experience, why not SHARE this with your friends and invite them to a night of fun? Immerse yourself in Singapore’s rich history through storey telling through various art mediums! ?