The Singapore Night Festival has returned for its 14th edition to Bras Basah and Bugis area from Aug. 18 to Aug. 26.
Featuring over 50 experiences, including programmes and artworks by local and international artists, this year's festival focuses on the stories of the Bugis – some of the first settlers to arrive in Singapore to trade.
Guided by this year's overarching theme – Singapore, the Great Port City – the festival sheds light on Singapore's evolution from a vital port city to today's dynamic modern metropolis.
Artworks and light installations featured at Singapore Night Festival 2023
This year's highlight, Time is a Black Circle by Dawn Ng, transports festival-goers to the roaring sixties and seventies to experience the discothèques located in the Bras Basah.Bugis precinct.
The highlight of the exhibition is the small "disco time portal", where visitors can roller skate in a cylindrical "portal" and relive a bygone era in their parents' and grandparents' dancing shoes.
There is also a non-skating option where visitors can enjoy an immersive multi-sensorial experience that recalls the psychedelic colours and nostalgic tunes of the discothèque era.
This attraction, however, is ticketed. A skating ticket and a non-skating ticket both cost S$27.
Tickets can be purchased here via Klook.
700 Years by playwright Zizi Majid, illustrator Muhammad Izdi and digital artist Jérémie Bellot is a projection mapping on the facade of the National Museum of Singapore.
It aims to captivate festival goers with a six-minute theatrical experience that takes them on a journey through 700 years of Singapore's port city history to the present and beyond.
Kids programme at the family zone
You can also find a dedicated family zone around Fort Canning Rise for the first time as part of Singapore Night Festival, where there will be children programmes and light installations designed for the young.
Families can explore Children’s Museum Singapore after hours and enjoy tales of Bukit Larangan or Forbidden Hill at the storytelling session.
The night festival will also features artwork inspired by Singapore’s rich flora and fauna.
Other interesting installations
Festival villages
The Main Festival Village @ SMU Campus Green will showcase live performances by local talents from various schools of the Arts in Singapore, through a collaboration between Singapore Night Festival and Singapore Management University (SMU) Arts Festival, The Social Post.
The festival village at SMU features over 10 food and beverage stalls, as well as tidbits that are exclusive to Singapore Night Festival.
Over at Festival Village @ Armenian Street, organised by the Peranakan Museum, festival-goers can enjoy local delicacies like kueh by The Flour Department x Pastories and the Peranakan-themed festivities.
Finally, at the third village, Festival Village @ CHIJMES, be prepared for eclectic beats and delectable food and drinks as viewers enjoy projection mapping works on the facade of the heritage building.
Details
The Singapore Night Festival 2023 will last until Aug. 26 2023.
The festival is open daily from 7:30pm to 12am.
For more information on the festival, click here.
Top photo via Singapore Night Festival