Ok let’s start this off with a trivia…
I got to do a trivia during the media preview of the Singapore Night Festival 2025 and learned that the original name that “Bras Basah” is a transliteration of is Beras Basah. Beras Besah means wet rice in Malay. Go figure…
The last Singapore Night Festival was attended by others from the Little Big Red Dot team.
This was Willie’s post on the 2024 edition.
My Sneak Peek at Singapore Night Festival 2024: A Playground of Light and Nostalgia
Singapore is so boring… there is nothing to do but visit shopping malls. Every other month a new shopping mall pops up and thousands flock to visit it. Same shops in a different location… So when something like the Singapore Night Festival comes along, don’t you think this is a much better way to spend your evening than say visiting Uniqlo for the hundredth time???
Oh yes, shout out to Shiok Burger. Coincidentally I know the boss. He is the father of my daughter’s classmate. I tried his food from his first outlet at Paya Lebar about a year and a half ago. Good to see that the brand is taking off! This was our dinner for the evening.
The first stop of the media tour was at Sky Castle. It is opposite Cathay. If you are driving, park at Cathay and cross the road via the pedestrian crossing.
So many members of the media were present.
This is a sound and light installation. This would look so much better at night. This was just before 7pm so the sky was still a bit too bright.
Oh yes, the Singapore Night Festival 2025 is happening from 22 August to 6 September. Sunday to Thursday from 7:30pm to 11pm and on Fridays and Saturdays from 7:30pm to 12 midnight.
Here is a map of the events that are happening.
If you would like to know… I am using the 10% cinebloom filter by Moment to get dreamy shots for this review.
First stop, the National Museum of Singapore. When was the last time I stepped into the museum? Probably over 30 years ago when I was in primary school?
The projection looks nice huh? There are a lot of this throughout the Night Festival.
We got on the bus at the National Museum to take us to Bugis+. Feels like I was on a tour but to get to Genting…
This is Waves of Time. Installation 15 on the map. I’ll leave a downloadable map at the bottom of this blog post.
You are supposed to stand behind that light installation and pose as a mermaid. Took everyone a while to figure that out. It was nice to have the artists or creators of the artworks and installations present to explain what was going on.
You get the picture? For the record, I did not try to act like a mermaid or merman.
Next up we walked to installation 16. The Garden of Stories.
This is just outside the Stamford Arts Centre.
We went into the Stamford Arts Centre. There was this performance. I was unsure whether this was part of the festival but the media were brought here for the performance. I am guessing this is item 28 on the map? A Date With Tradition? Seriously the kids performing were very good.
I am actually guessing that this may be item 26. Do explore the Singapore Night Festival 2025’s website to get the exact name of this performance and the performance timing.
Ok this I did not really understand. This is called UTOPIA. It is a video of a distant future of people in space suits eating in Bras Basah. This is supposed to represent Bras Basah many years later.
Climate change is real…
Next stop… CHIJMES.
The thing about this installation is that the music from the pubs were louder than the music accompanying the projection. Hence I could not hear much of the sound from the performance even though I was trying to.
But it did look oh so pretty…
Next stop was just outside Raffles City.
I can see many Instagram posts happening here.
This place was right outside Cathay. It is a place for the public to sit down and relax. Kind of novel.
Wait… what the… that sign.
Capitol looks so pretty…
I don’t understand this thing outside Funan. Maybe that is the thing about art. You do not need to understand. I am guessing this would be a cool idea for the latest PopMart blind box series.
The signs do point you in a sensible flow. Every sign points you to the next destination. After Funan was Armenian Street. Walk towards the fire station.
Everyone headed off without me at this point. This was where I figured I should follow the arrows to the next location.
This installation is titled Skygazers. It is at the Peranakan Museum.
Armenian Street looks very pleasant. I think this stretch should be the most interactive. These stalls were not open when I was there but I believe they should be there for the festival proper.
I know there are not many things to do in Singapore. But get out and walk! Look how pretty the city is! Why are you still reading this while shopping at Uniqlo???
(p.s. I do not have anything against Uniqlo. Just trying to make a point.)
The last installation the media visited was Jiwa Laut. Seriously what does that mean?
Ok this time I am not kidding. This was overall a very nice way to spend my Wednesday evening. A nice punctuation to an otherwise hectic work week. Want to spend a decently interesting weekend? Head over to the Singapore Night Festival 2025. Take a walk, clock some steps and enjoy some art and some of the performances. Trust me, this beats mindlessly scrolling on social media or the internet. That being said, thanks for reading this blog post!
The Singapore Night Festival 2025 is a sure go!
For details visit the Singapore Night Festival 2025 page here.
Here is a map of the festival.
