Four more shows to catch at Huayi – Chinese Festival of Arts 2026
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The four shows should guarantee a neigh-ing good time.
PHOTOS: ESPLANADE – THEATRES ON THE BAY, RIGHT EYEBALL STUDIO
SINGAPORE – In time for the Year of the Horse, Esplanade’s Huayi – Chinese Festival of Arts returns for its 24th edition from Feb 27 to March 8. There are a stable of shows from China and Taiwan such as clash-of-civilisation Qing court drama Deling And Cixi and the quieter award-winning Alzheimer’s play, Le Pere (The Father).
A third is the altogether quirkier Tall Tales: Bananas & Ang Ku Kuehs, born of a collaboration between Singapore’s Oliver Chong and Taiwan’s Wang Chia-ming. Folk tales blurring the borders between humans and animals are dreamily told through puppetry and live performance.
Still not enticed? The bounty extends to four other shows that should guarantee a neigh-ing good time.
1. ‘Being’ The Freshman Concert 2026
Chen Diya (left) and Carrie Yeo will present some of their greatest hits at “Being” The Freshman Concert 2026.
PHOTO: ESPLANADE – THEATRES ON THE BAY
For two nights, Singapore Mandopop duo Chen Diya and Carrie Yeo – aka The Freshman – will take fans on a nostalgic journey through some of their greatest hits.
The two met on Mediacorp reality singing competition Project Superstar in 2006 and have enjoyed a fruitful partnership since. They promise to sing fan favourites like Holding On (2016), It’s Love, Harry (2017) and Throw (2023), as well as tracks from their latest album Being, released in late 2025.
Info: str.sg/Nh7y
2. The Sun
The Sun is created by Japanese playwright Tomohiro Maekawa.
PHOTO: ESPLANADE – THEATRES ON THE BAY
Science fiction comes to life on stage in this dystopian fable set in a future world divided into mutants intolerant to sunlight and the subjugated human species.
Having enjoyed film and novel adaptations since it was first staged in 2011, The Sun is created by Japanese playwright Tomohiro Maekawa. Taiwan’s 4 Chairs Theatre will perform and reinterpret it in a post-pandemic context.
Info: str.sg/KTK5
3. Wukong’s 72 Transformations
The Singapore Chinese Orchestra reimagines the various identities of Sun Wukong, the monkey king.
PHOTO: ESPLANADE – THEATRES ON THE BAY
Touted as an immersive concert experience, this is an exploration of the infamous Monkey King through – improbably – puppetry, multimedia and song.
The Singapore Chinese Orchestra, led by principal conductor Quek Ling Kiong, takes the point of view of an ageing Sun Wukong looking back on his own life, but also how he has been represented in television shows, movies, anime and even video games.
Home-grown puppetry troupe Paper Monkey Theatre supplies the visuals.
Info: str.sg/qtiy
4. LauZone – A Multilingual HK-style Cabaret
Anna Lo and Rick Lau return for cabaret LauZone.
PHOTO: RIGHT EYEBALL STUDIO
Last seen at Huayi in 2023 for their sold-out Tri Ka Tsai cabaret, performers Anna Lo and Rick Lau return with LauZone, turbocharging their trademark language count.
This musical cabaret is a tribute to the dialects spoken in multicultural Hong Kong by older immigrant generations, including Cantonese, Putonghua, Chiuchow and Shanghainese.
It is as well a parsing of the complicated relationship younger Hong Kongers have with this fast-fading linguistic culture.
Info: str.sg/cxFc
