Singapore Night Festival 2017 celebrates 10 years by bringing back its popular homegrown acts

Singapore Night Festival (SNF), which turns 10 this year, will be looking towards the future by reflecting on its past. 

To commemorate the festival's journey, SNF invites visitors to take a walk down memory lane with 10 returning local artists and artist groups, in addition to the international acts.

The 10 acts include: Bloco Singapura, Timbre Music (presenting the New Stream Brass Band), Peranakan Sayang, Flamenco Sin Fronteras and Nawaz & Friends, ZingO, Instigator Afrobeat Orchestra, Grapple MAX Dojo, The Brass Barre, Starlight Alchemy, and Mind Magic Mistress.  

While the full line-up of acts and venues won't be revealed until closer to the festival date, we know that these previous crowd favorites will be returning with fresh, new perspectives on their craft.

For example, here are three artists/groups that will be coming back with revamped visions:

Singapore's very own illusionist Ning Cai, previously known as Magic Babe Ning, is returning to the festival as Mind Magic Mistress after learning an entirely different school of magic: mindreading. 

This year, she will be accompanied by trained psychologist and hypnotist Paul Brook. The two mentalists will be performing a 45-minute interactive show called Pain/Pleasure for those 18 years and older.

Visitors can expect to experience the Hypno-Dungeon where "your mind holds you down and others take charge," Pleasure of the Feather, where you feel like you are being touched even though nobody is around, and the 'Toy' Shop, which has been proclaimed to be a visit that will "leave you doubting reality."

Another exciting act to look forward to is the Night Festival Showdown, performed by Grapple MAX Dojo, a pro-wrestling collective that just launched last November.

Co-Founder of the dojo Greg Ho, who performed at SNF in 2014, is returning with students from a variety of backgrounds, from entrepreneurs to doctors to actors, all ranging from 17 to 40 years of age.

Strikingly, because the dojo is known for "no rings, no ropes, no barriers," audiences can actually come extremely close to the wrestling performers, right up to the mat! But rest assured, the group ensures it is completely safe.

While each and every one of the returning 10 artists or groups will have electrifying new performances in store for visitors, we wanted to lastly highlight the return of Starlight Alchemy.

The multidisciplinary performance arts collective consists of local and international artists specialising in the manipulation of fire and LED lights to produce captivating and thrilling visual effects. 

The installation, called 'The Flower of Life and the Infinite Self' is a geodesic bamboo dome with interior walls mounted with geometrically arranged convex mirrors that form dynamic reflections of visitors as they walk around the dome. 

While new talent will always be a part of SNF's magic, this year is all about celebrating the community that makes it possible. Plus, those who've fallen in love with these performers in previous years now have a chance to see some of their favorites again at the place where it all began.

The admission-free festival will run from Friday, August 18 to Sunday, August 26 from 7.30pm - 12am, with performances on the 24th, 25th, and 26th.

thanhb@sph.com.sg