More than 500 tickets sold for Sifa On Demand

The on-demand run, previously scheduled to end on June 12, has been extended till June 20. PHOTO: ARTS HOUSE LIMITED

SINGAPORE - More than 500 tickets have been sold for Singapore International Festival of Arts' (Sifa) video-on-demand platform.

Organiser Arts House Limited hopes sales will pick up further with an extended digital run. A spokesman said: "We recognise that most arts enthusiasts may decide on their video-on-demand options only following the end of the live programmes."

Sifa On Demand will begin on June 5, almost a week after live programmes ended on May 30 with The Finger Players' theatre production Oiwa - The Ghost Of Yotsuya.

The on-demand run, previously scheduled to end on June 12, has been extended till June 20.

Audience capacities for Sifa had to be reduced this year after tightened measures to combat Covid-19 went into effect on May 16. This was a blow to the festival, which had just opened two days before and had even added performances to some shows after tickets sold out quickly.

But, given last year's abrupt festival cancellation, organisers were better prepared to pivot to digital this time.

Sifa festival director Gaurav Kripalani said: "One of the things the pandemic taught us all in the arts community was that it is necessary to invest in high-quality recordings of live performances.

"Previously, the norm for the industry worldwide was to simply archive a performance with just one camera at the back of the theatre. What Sifa has done this year is a multi-camera capture of all the festival commissions to create a high-quality archival of these shows."

Cancelled sold-out show The Rhythm Of Us, a much-anticipated collaboration between the Singapore Symphony Orchestra and the Singapore Dance Theatre, will now be available digitally instead. It will premiere online on June 13.

Mr Kripalani added: "We know nothing beats the live experience. But, with limited seats available, we wanted to ensure that as many people as possible had access to shows in Sifa this year. I think $60 to watch 17 performances is great value."

Book it/ Singapore International Festival of Arts on demand

Where: Online

When: June 5 to 20

Admission: $15 for individual titles, $60 for all-access bundle of 17 shows

Info: sifa.sg

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