Together we achieve

Battling the wind for spin of togetherness

In the Growing Together act, dancers Ivan Koh and Tan Mei Zheng, suspended at heights of up to 20m, twirled as lovers in an aerial dance sequence in front of the floating platform's LED screen.
In the Growing Together act, dancers Ivan Koh and Tan Mei Zheng, suspended at heights of up to 20m, twirled as lovers in an aerial dance sequence in front of the floating platform's LED screen.

To take part in his first performance as an aerialist in last year's National Day Parade (NDP), national serviceman Ivan Koh had to conquer an aversion to heights.

Along with 19 other performers from the Singapore Armed Forces Music and Drama Company, he performed a dance sequence while suspended from the domed roof of the National Stadium.

This year, he had to overcome another challenge - battling the wind at the Marina Bay floating platform.

In the Growing Together act, depicting how families are the heart of Singapore, he and dance partner Tan Mei Zheng twirled as lovers in an aerial dance sequence from heights of up to 20m.

"Sometimes there are winds that spin you and you pray you spin the right way around," said the 22-year-old.

Ms Tan, who owns an aerial dance school, said conveying emotions and realism while swinging from cables is no easy feat.

"There are parts where Ivan and I have to grab each other's hands, so we have to coordinate our movements, and also have that eye contact," said Ms Tan, 33.

Some performers are family in real life. Ms Cai Xin Hui and Mr Oi Wee Keong, for example, who were among 400 dancers from the People's Association representing different races and nationalities, met while performing together at the 2009 National Day Parade and fell in love.

The couple, both 30, tied the knot in 2013 and now have two children, aged one and four.

Said Mr Oi, who works in customer service: "For me, the NDP is special... The kids are still too young to participate, but they can watch us on TV at home."

Join ST's WhatsApp Channel and get the latest news and must-reads.

A version of this article appeared in the print edition of The Straits Times on August 10, 2017, with the headline Battling the wind for spin of togetherness. Subscribe