F.Y.I. Singapore Arts TRYING to infiltrate London
Tomorrow, the first-ever Singapore Season debuts in the city (London), and is poised to showcase some of Singapore's creative talents to those watching there.
For those not in the know, the season is a $1.83-million event that will take Singapore's versions of classical music, dance, theatre, film and food to the homeground of The Royal Ballet and Sir Andrew Lloyd Webber.
Involving about 250 artists, it will run until April 5 in eight venues and is likely to attract about 6,000 people to the ticketed performances alone.
Already, all 64 tables for the Singapore Evening gala dinner on March 15 in Central London's Old Truman Brewery, where Senior Minister Goh Chok Tong will be the guest of honour, have been snapped up by British and Singaporean corporate bigwigs.
Dr Tan Chin Nam, who chairs the season's steering committee, says ticket sales for performances by the Singapore Dance Theatre (SDT), T'ang Quartet and the Singapore Chinese Orchestra (SCO), and for Ong Keng Sen's Insomnia event at the Institute of Contemporary Arts, are 'encouraging'.
Dr Tan, who is permanent secretary for the Ministry of Information, Communications and the Arts (Mica), describes the event as 'a new chapter in national marketing'.
In fact, certain key words keep popping up when he tells Life! about the rationale behind the event.
There's 'holistic', for instance. 'Global' and 'cultural capital' also crop up.
Ask why the Government thinks the time is ripe for Singapore arts groups to venture collectively into London, he points out how Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong has already articulated his vision of Singapore as a land of opportunity and an inclusive society.
'During this phase of development, we'll see the holistic development of Singapore, covering both the hardware and software, heart-ware and soul-ware,' says Dr Tan.
'When cultural capital is deployed correctly, value will be generated and we'll be able to have global success.'
Devil's in details
PREVIOUSLY, arts groups have travelled abroad together to showcase their works. For example, 20 Singaporean artists took part in New Zealand's International Arts Festival last year.
But it's different this time around, what with the season's larger number of backers, if not artists, and the variety of acts that have been lined up (see other story).
Besides organisers National Arts Council (NAC), there are nine national agencies, three British business partners and 13 other sponsors and associates selling the season.
As NAC chief executive officer Lee Suan Hiang puts it: 'The devil is really in the details. If 99 per cent goes right, people will expect it anyway. If 1 per cent goes wrong, they'll remember it. So we want to go the extra mile to create the wow factor.'
The huge machination belies the season's almost organic beginnings: Ong Keng Sen, the SDT, SCO and T'ang Quartet had actually been invited, separately and on their own steam, to perform at various prestigious London venues.
Dr Tan says that such synergy between the private sector and artists will give Singapore the critical mass to do the marketing and add some excitement to the season.
Selling out?
TO THE argument that combining the arts with business opportunities might lead to cries of 'selling out', he says: 'Arts events require corporate sponsorship to survive. This will create the atmosphere to allow these relationships to evolve further.'
He looks genuinely surprised when asked if being under the Singapore Season banner might actually eclipse these arts groups' individual moment in the London spotlight.
He asks: 'Don't you think that if you are one of the arts groups you would want to be part of a much more impactful marketing approach? That's why this is a win-win formulation.
'Individual artists will take the centrestage when the performance is on. They will be challenged. The stage has been created for them, the audience has been considerably enhanced so that we can all participate in this experience.'
There are many hopes riding on the season.
For one thing, says Mr Lee, the success of the inaugural season's featured artists will hopefully motivate other artists here.
For another, it sets the stage for Britons to be introduced to a softer side of Singapore, which they seem to remember mostly as a 'fine' city.
NAC had invited three British journalists here last year to check out the arts scene.
Thus far, there has been only one published piece on it in The Spectator magazine last December. It had glowing things to say about the standards of arts groups and venues here, but painted a less flattering picture of the freedom for artistic expression here.
When asked about the article, Dr Tan, who has read it, says: 'There's this stereotypical view of Singapore that we have to dispel. Some people may find it refreshing that we're participating in such an event. And that in itself is quite good.'
In a separate interview with Life!, dramatist and season participant Ong Keng Sen wonders why the festival is being kicked off in London instead of Berlin, Paris or New York. Cities, he reckons, which have consistently followed the development of Asian - including Singaporean - arts.
As he puts it: 'There are tons of activities and events in London that compete for your attention. I honestly don't know what the Londoners will think. But I suppose that's where the most education needs to be done.'
And if this maiden Singapore rebranding mission yields success, Dr Tan intends to take the concept to other countries - provided Singapore's arts groups continue to be invited to significant world stages.
What if they don't? Can't they just be sent anyway?
'We can also consider that. Or we can also consider a smaller version of this season. There are variations.'
Season-Ings
T'ang Quartet
Wigmore Hall, March 26
THE zippy foursome cap their sixth year together as a professional ensemble with their London debut, which will feature an eclectic programme of Polish avant-garde composer Erwin Schulhoff, Russia's Dmitri Shostakovich and China's Bright Sheng.Cellist Leslie Tan, 40, says: 'The hope is for Londoners to go: 'Wow, they really have culture in Singapore.' '
Singapore Dance Theatre (SDT)
Sadler's Wells, March 16 to 18
LED by artistic director Goh Soo Khim, the 17-year-old dance company presents an East-meets-West triplebill on its first visit to Britain, comprising Singapore choreographer Goh Choo San's Birds Of Paradise, Australian Stanton Welch's Maninyas and Indonesian Boi Sakti's The Lost Space.SDT's general manager, Ng Siew Eng, says: 'London critics are known to be some of the harshest around. So we have to convince them that SDT has substance and is not just a group from the exotic Far East.'
Singapore Chinese Orchestra
Barbican Hall, April 1
BESIDES premiering British composer Michael Nyman's work - written specially for them - the 70-strong Chinese orchestra combines music and letters in a concept it first performed at the Singapore Arts Festival in 2003. Cultural Medallion winner Tan Swie Hian will write Chinese calligraphy as the orchestra plays Hong Kong's Law Wing-fai's Calligraphy Concerto. SCO's music director, Yeh Tsung, 54, says: 'We are now a step nearer towards our aim to be one of the leading orchestras in the world.'
Ong Keng Sen's Insomnia
Institute of Contemporary Arts, Feb 25 to March 12
THE theatre doyen curates a cache of contemporary South-east Asian culture, like performances by Singapore indie band Tiramisu, talks by new media artist Charles Lim (tsunami.net) and, of course, TheatreWorks plays, namely, The Continuum and The Global Soul. Read Life!'s interview with Ong tomorrow.
posted by Quirky fidz at 2:18 午前
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