Get ready for crowded arts events calendar in Singapore from May to July

i Light Singapore's Glacier Dreams. PHOTO: I LIGHT SINGAPORE

SINGAPORE – Brace yourself for a barrage of arts, culture and heritage events happening over the next three months. 

After three years of venue and border closures paired with stop-start reopenings, the official return to Dorscon Green has seen event organisers diving back into programming with a vengeance. 

Arts fans will have already noticed the gradual increase in events in 2023.

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.

The Straits Times Life is putting together an online calendar to help everyone – from parents with young kids to young culture vultures – navigate the onslaught. With the June holidays looming, more family-friendly activities will be added to the line-up at the end of May.

In the meantime, here is a brief sampler of what audiences can expect. 

Family-friendly fun 

Flipside 

The Esplanade’s Flipside festival has traditionally been the fun, family-friendly counterpoint to the Singapore International Festival of Arts. PHOTO: ESPLANADE.COM

Where: Esplanade – Theatres on the Bay, 1 Esplanade Drive
When: May 26 to June 4, various timings
Admission: Free and paid (tickets from $30)

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. 

There will be 13 aerialists for the Aerial Open Stage event. PHOTO: ROGAN YEOH

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. 

Puppet play Chimpanzee is about an ape raised like a human child in a family. PHOTO: ESPLANADE – THEATRES ON THE BAY

There are treats, too, for adult fans of puppetry with two theatre offerings. Chimpanzee 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.

Gallery Children’s Biennale 

A concept sketch of one of the installations at the National Gallery Singapore for the Gallery Children’s Biennale. PHOTO: NATIONAL GALLERY SINGAPORE

Where: National Gallery Singapore, 1 St Andrew’s Road
When: May 27 to March 31, 2024, Saturdays to Thursdays, 10am to 7pm; Fridays, 10am to 9pm
Admission: Free for Singaporeans and permanent residents

The fourth edition of the Gallery Children’s Biennale opens on May 27 with the theme, Let’s Make A Better Place.

Ms Suenne Megan Tan, senior director of museum planning and audience engagement at the National Gallery Singapore, says: “The theme for the Gallery Children’s Biennale was crafted with a goal in mind: to encourage children to be curious about the world around them and the issues that affect our world today, so that they may be inspired to take an active role in shaping a better future for themselves and others through art.” 

A concept drawing of an installation titled Compound at National Gallery Singapore for the Gallery Children’s Biennale. PHOTO: NATIONAL GALLERY SINGAPORE

There will be 11 installations by international artists which offer immersive play experiences for children of all ages. Ms Tan highlights some new additions, including a guidebook that encourages independent reflection and an option that allows visitors to design a character which interacts with the installations through augmented-reality activation. 

Children’s Season 

Where: National Heritage Board, various museums
When: May 27 to June 25, various timings
Admission: Free and paid

The upcoming Children’s Season is likely to have a new anchor venue now that the Children’s Museum is open. This year’s theme centres on occupations and inventions, so children can explore jobs and inventions from the past and imagine how these will change in the future. 


Good for the ‘Gram

I Light Singapore 

Trumpet Flowers is an interactive light installation that visitors will be able to “play” a tune on. PHOTO: I LIGHT SINGAPORE

Where: Marina Bay area
When: June 1 to 25, 7.30 to 11pm daily, with extended hours to 12am on Fridays and Saturdays
Admission: Free and paid (tickets at $5)

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. 

GIF Fest 

Celebrate the animated gif with multimedia artworks at Gif Fest. PHOTO: TAKAHIRO KOMURO

Where: National Design Centre, 111 Middle Road
When: May 18 to Aug 26, 9am to 9pm daily
Admission: Free

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 for 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. 


Culture vulture fodder

Authentic Flamenco Presents Paula Rodriguez

Award-winning dancer Paula Rodriguez headlines Authentic Flamenco. PHOTO: FEVER

Where: KC Arts Centre, 20 Merbau Road
When: June 1 to 11, various timings
Admission: From $65

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. 

Doubt: A Parable

Doubt: A Parable stars Jason Godfrey (left) and Neo Swee Lin. PHOTO: PANGDEMONIUM

Where: Singtel Waterfront Theatre, 1 Esplanade Drive
When: June 2 to 18, various timings
Admission: From $65

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), 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 story has been edited for clarity.

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