Singapore HeritageFest 2023: Visit bus and train depots, learn Indian and Malay martial arts
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Watch a street theatre piece by The ETCeteras under the banyan tree in front of the National Museum of Singapore.
PHOTO: THE ETCETERAS
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SINGAPORE – Hop on a “zhnged”-up bus for a night ride, complete with spine-tingling stories, on a rare route that operates only a few times a year.
Go back to nature at the Bukit Timah Saddle Club
These events are part of Singapore HeritageFest 2023, which returns from May 1 to 28. Transportation is the theme for the first half of the festival, while sports will take over for the second half.
Festival director David Chew says that with the festival turning 20 this year and organiser National Heritage Board (NHB) marking its 30th anniversary, this is a time to take stock.
When the festival started, the NHB organised all the programmes.
“Now, we have so many community partners who do not just programme but organise other heritage festivals like the MyCommunity festival and the Teochew and Hokkien festivals.
“We want to become more like a supporting partner, a platform for these festivals and community partners, to showcase not just their programming, but also to help them get new audiences,” he says.
To that end, the festival will include a symposium targeted at community partners as well as members of the public who can learn about what goes into the making of festivals.
Singapore HeritageFest 2023 also marks two national milestones: the 35th anniversary of SMRT and the 50th anniversary of Sports Singapore, hence the themes of transportation and sports.
As usual, the event will open doors for participants, with rare opportunities to go behind the scenes in these two areas. There will be tours to bus and train depots, limited to small groups which visitors will have to register for due to security considerations.
Festival organisers have also tapped the expertise of bus and train enthusiasts, some of whom will be sharing their stories and collections at the National Museum of Singapore.
The festival has also commissioned theatre group The ETCeteras to create a street theatre piece, Changing Shift, which will be staged under the famous banyan tree outside the National Museum.
All Aboard! SMG Tour to SMRT Mandai Train Depot 1.
PHOTO: LAND TRANSPORT AUTHORITY
The work will focus on a taxi driver and a rickshaw puller, who relate their account of the evolution of public transportation in Singapore.
Art fans can also sign up for tours by Art Outreach Singapore, which takes participants through four stations on the North East Line with public art installations.
One unusual tour will be conducted in the Eurasian language of Kristang and explore the links between the Kristang community and the neighbourhoods around the Bencoolen and Bugis stations.
The museum will also host the Homeground exhibition, one of the festival’s anchor events.
Artist Sadiq Mansor has been commissioned to create an installation at the Stamford Gallery. A street of five shophouses, decorated with Sadiq’s signature illustrations, will host 10 of the NHB’s most popular heritage trails,
Sports fans can look forward to tours of the Singapore Sports School as well as opportunities to meet athletes at the Jalan Besar stadium and Enabling Village.
The ancient Indian martial art form silambam.
PHOTO: THE KALARI ACADEMY
They can also get hands-on experiences in heritage sports by signing up for a workshop in the ancient Indian martial art form silambam, which employs a 152cm-long wooden staff.
The festival will end on a high-energy note on the last weekend with a sports day at the National Museum lawn. Visitors will get to try out for different contests as well as compete in fun challenges.
Mr Chew says: “The whole idea behind the festival is to make heritage relatable, as it is part of everyday life, it’s all around us.”
For detailed programmes, go to sgheritagefest.gov.sg
