We don't know about you, but we're dying to watch a live performance in person – especially after all the brilliant live streams we've kept ourselves entertained with the past few months. That's finally becoming a reality thanks to the live performance pilots initiated by the National Arts Council (NAC).
Singapore International Festival of Arts (SIFA) v2.020 has commissioned Poetry Under the Southern Bough by Toy Factory Productions – a hybrid event comprising live performance and virtual streaming. Celebrating the poetry of China's Shakespeare Tang Xianzu, the contemporary performance weaves tapestries of dance, opera, music and theatre together. Audiences are led on a journey through the dreamscapes of 20 selected poems from A Dream Under the Southern Bough, Tang Xianzu most renowned work.
"After six months of arts venues being closed, I'm delighted that SIFA will be presenting one of the first shows with a live audience," says Festival Director Gaurav Kripalani. "Having commissioned Toy Factory to stage the three-year trilogy of A Dream Under the Southern Bough, we look forward to working with them on this complementary work."
The 45-minute multi-disciplinary show is performed in Mandarin with English subtitles and is performed over two sessions (at 3pm and 8pm) at the Drama Centre Theatre on October 10. But if you still prefer watching it from the comfort of home, there are also tickets for a digital live stream which will allow for the show.
But get your tickets fast, as there's a maximum audience of 50 per show. Additionally, in keeping up with government regulations, extensive measures will be incorporated to safeguard all performers and audiences. These include enhanced cleaning of the theatre, compulsory checking in of SafeEntry and temperature screening, observing a three-metre distance between performers and audience and one-metre spacing between audience members, and no intermission.