Singapore – Mid-Autumn Festival celebrations are underway at Zhongshan Memorial Hall, Gardens by the Bay and Chinatown. There is a common theme of a blissful reunion after the pandemic hits.
Organizers hope that in-person activities will resume or be held on a larger scale, with lantern displays, food fairs and performances among the highlights, which will draw large crowds. .
Until September 25th, the Memorial Hall on Da Yin Road showcases a lawn installation created in collaboration with Taiwan’s Kai 3D Art Studio. The celestial body has a spherical lantern about 2 meters wide and high, the Sun, Moon, Earth, Saturn and Mercury symbolizing the joyful unity of family and friends.
There will also be a variety of free and ticketed programs on September 3rd and 4th, including performances and workshops. For more information, visit his website at Sun Yat-sen Nanyang Memorial Hall.
Alvin Tan, the National Heritage Commission’s deputy chief policy and community officer, said the lawn installation began in 2015 and remains an annual attraction even during the pandemic, attracting 31,000 visitors last year. rice field.
All other festival programs have been held virtually in the last two years. Tan expects more visitors this year as these programs return to Memorial Hall.
For the first time since the pandemic, Gardens by the Bay will bring back a marketplace offering street food, trinkets and outdoor cultural performances for the celebrations from August 27th to September 11th.
Teo Ying Er, Assistant Director of Programming (Festivals and Events), said once things return to normal, friends and family will be able to fully enjoy the festival without restrictions.
Highlights of the lantern display include “Flight to the Phoenix,” inspired by a Chinese folktale about a hundred birds soaring towards the phoenix to honor its sacrifice. In Supertree Grove, there is a reunion of Joyous He featuring his 12 zodiac animals from China.
Another lantern set, The Colors Of Daily Life, depicts animals playing together in a post-pandemic world. It is made of traditional Korean paper in partnership with the Embassy of the Republic of Korea and the Seoul Tourism Organization.
The Colonnade of Lights is decorated with 1,000 lanterns hand-painted by members of the public, including readers of the China Media Group of SPH Media Trust, one of the festival’s partners.
