0 Music & Theatre at Night Festival 2011

Last Friday night yeah we danced on table tops, and we took to many shots... I was out in the open air at Singapore Night Festival 2011: Voyage, organized by the National Museum. Although it is already into its fourth year, it is my first time going for it. I was alone as JJ had something on, but in the end I suppose that was better as I could enjoy the music and performances fully without having to care to make small talk.

The Voyage Night Festival celebrates the spirit of travel, journeys and pilgrimages by people of diverse cultures through the passage of time. To this end there are a myriad of musical performances, theater productions, sound and light installations and exhibitions held around the National Museum. I think its a great idea because it's free and easy - you get to choose which performance you want to go rather than being bogged down by something to arty farty to comprehend.

I went down to the Museum after dinner and managed to catch the last bit of Mundo Fado by Goan singer Sonia Shirsat and her band. Now where in the wide world is Goa and what is Mundo Fado? Fado is a Portuguese music genre that originated from Portuguese sailors longing for their homes. When the Portuguese landed in Goa in South West India 500 years ago, not only did the Fado became part of the Goan culture, a local version called the Mundo was born too. I'm not sure how the characteristics of Mundo and Fado differ, or maybe they are just different in language.

Next up was Rub' al Khali - The Empty Quarter by the famous New York Soundwalk group. Having taken the Sonic Arts and Sciences module last semester which opened my ears to a whole new perspective of sound, I was pretty excited for this performance, which consisted of a live composition of sounds collected during a 45 day trek through the coasts of Yemen, Saudi Arabia and the UAE. A live synchronized sonic fresco (mostly of desert landscapes) resulted in an truly immersive sonic experience. As much as I would like to have stayed longer, I could only manage the first 15 min of the performance as I wanted to catch the Eva Quartet.

One of the pros handling one of the many turntables. If you had to choose between losing your sight or sense of hearing, what would it be? I always thought being blind was worse off than being deaf, until the Sonic Arts module I took changed my perspective. At least with a sense of hearing only you'd still get a sense of the "3D space" around you (try closing your eyes and you know what I mean). But if you're blind, you're just living in a flat silent movie for the rest of your life.

They belted out folksy songs in Bulgarian, their individual voices synced perfect harmony and rhythm. I really enjoyed their singing even though in was in Bulgarian; I was just short of tapping my feet and doing that traditional folksy dance. The man also gave a short solo performance on a bagpipe-like instrument (I just found out from Google that it's called a gaida). The funny thing is that there was still sound coming out from the gaida even when he opened his mouth to take a breath. It's sort of like... delayed sound, if there's ever such a thing?

The highlight of the festival was Corazon de Angeles in Paradise (Heart of Angels) by Theater Tol. A slight drizzle threatened to cancel this outdoor performance, but thankfully, it finally subsided and the audience was rewarded to a spectacular show that combined music, dance, film, aerial acrobatics and pyrotechnics to celebrate an inter-cultural wedding. The programme guide did not specify the cultures, but from the choice of songs like Carmen and Ave Maria and their dressing, I suppose Spanish/Italian and Indian?

The first part of the performance was done on a raised stage at the Museum's facade. This section ended with a snooching kiss between the two lovers to the tune of Georges Bizet's Carmen and a burst of fireworks.

The focus of the performance then moved from stage to... air. Yes, you read that right. An aerial performance with acrobats/dancers on bicycle-like things suspended from a towering crane. That circular structure also doubled up as a screen that showed flashing images of Singapore's past. While it's an effort to give the performance by the Belgian theatre company a local context, frankly I don't see much of a connection and thought it was redundant.

Those in white are guardian angels giving good tidings to the wedding couple while the performer in red was singing Ave Maria.

And the final burst of fireworks to the tune of the Italian song Bella Ciao (Goodbye Beautiful).

There were other shows I didn't catch but of what I saw, I enjoyed them!