A quick digest of the coolest weekend happenings in Singapore.
Friday, Sept 7
Chetti Melaka of the Straits: Rediscovering Peranakan Indian Communities
Find out about the history and culture of the Chetti Melaka, an early Indian migrant community, at this months-long exhibition, with items contributed by members of the community. Highlights on display include a Hohner accordion, a pair of miniature Hantu Tetek figures, and a documentary by K Rajagopal about the community.
Until May 5, 2019 at the Indian Heritage Centre. Free.
This festival celebrates the Malay language through music, theater, and poetry, with dramatized readings, traditional drum performances, storytelling sessions, and more.
Until Sept 9; various timings at various locations in Esplanade. Free.
To celebrate its first anniversary, Bar Rouge is throwing a circus party set to a 1920s carnival theme, with freaky performances by stilt walkers, snake charmers, and ribbon dancers, plus free-flow popcorn all night on Friday, followed by Bar Rouge Shanghai’s resident DJ Keint taking over the decks on Saturday.
Until Sept 8; 8pm-late at Bar Rouge Singapore. $25 after 10:30pm, includes one house pour.
Citizen Farm by Edible Garden City
This month-long farmer’s market supports local small batch farmers and growers with vendors hawking everything from golden and pink oyster mushrooms to momotaro tomatoes and microgreens.
Until Sept 28; Wed-Sun 8am-9pm at Open Farm Community. Free.
The inaugural festival features performances by 21 K-pop names, including the likes of Wanna One, Apink, Victon, Soyou, Exid, BTOB, Taeyeon, and Dreamcatcher.
Until Sept 9 at Singapore Indoor Stadium. $148-$298.
Indonesia: Land of Treasures Exhibition
To explore Indonesia’s cities and islands before you depart Singapore for your holiday, check out Changi Airport’s exhibition for highlights like a replica Komodo Dragon and the UNESCO World Heritage-listed Borobudur Temple. While you’re there, also swing by the Indonesia: Land of Fun Carnival on weekends in the same terminal, where you’ll find rides like spinning tea cups and chair swing, plus game stalls galore.
Until Oct 7; daily noon-11pm at Changi Airport Terminal 3, Departure Hall, Central Immigration. Exhibition is free; carnival passes $10.
The Parkview Museum’s latest art exhibition in Singapore focuses on contemporary drawings, with works by 42 artists from across the globe.
Until Jan 5, 2019; Mon-Sat noon-7pm at The Parkview Museum Singapore. Free.
Mid-Autumn at Gardens by the Bay
The gardens celebrate this year’s Mid-Autumn Festival to the theme of “Autumn of Fantasies”, with lantern displays, floating lotuses on Dragonfly Lake, a golden wishing tree, cultural performances, traditional local games, a food street, a traditional Chinese village, and more.
Until Sept 24; various timings at various locations in Gardens by the Bay. Free and ticketed.
Groove to the beat of 35 emerging acts from 18 countries at 80 free shows across Clarke Quay and Timbre venues this month, with local acts like Bakers in Spaces, HubbaBubbas, Inch, Orangecove, and Retrofocus taking the stage alongside Japanese rockers Amnesia, Shanghai-based electro producer Corsak, Malaysian indie outfit Midnight Fusic, and Filipino alt rock band Over October.
Sept 7-8 & 10-12; various timings at various locations in Clarke Quay and at Timbre venues. Free.
In collaboration with The Artground, Tanjong Pagar Centre opens its grounds to host interactive art installations for the little ones. Designed by Daiya Aida from Japan, the play area features works like Wave Structure, Climbing Dome, Mini Platform, and Big Slide for kids to expend their energy.
Until Nov 30 at Tanjong Pagar Centre, L1 Urban Park. Free.
Singapore International Photography Festival
This year’s festival is set to the theme of “Like You, Me, Everybody Else” with a variety of exhibitions, talks, film screenings, guided tours, and showcases held over the next couple months.
Until Dec 9; various timings at various locations. Free and ticketed.
Warner TV Escape Room Challenge
Besides escape rooms themed after TV shows like The Big Bang Theory, Gotham, and Lethal Weapon, this event also features photobooths, puzzle challenges, an archery arena, a DC cosplay contest, and more.
Until Sept 9; noon-8pm at The Centrepoint’s ground floor. Free.
X-periment! @ one-north Festival
Here’s one for those who get their kicks from the world of science and tech — 25 exhibitions, talks, and workshops centered on the theme of artificial intelligence, running all day Friday and Saturday. There will be interactive installations such as a 10m-tall inflatable replica of the digestive system, and a station where visitors can use photography to “paint with light.” There will also be a showcase with “laser tag drone shooting,” and a live show held by the Royal Institution UK to demonstrate how energy gets transferred. A good one for the kiddos too.
Sept 7, 4pm-4:45pm, and Sept 8, 4:15pm-5pm at Level 1 Atrium, Fusionopolis One. Free entry.
Vino lovers can kick start the weekend with boutique wines from Spain and beyond, as Esquina hosts a rotating weekly line-up of at least 12 wines ($14/glass) to go with its modern Spanish bar bites.
Every Fri & Sat, 10pm-late at Esquina.
Saturday, Sept 8
Watch as pilots from Singapore, Indonesia, Thailand, Japan, Hong Kong, and Taiwan take their drones to the skies to compete for the championship title. The event will also feature drone displays by local and international brands, as well as drone simulators and a live stream of the races.
2pm-10pm at Marina Bay Golf Club. Free for spectators.
Touted as the largest showcase of Japanese food, culture, and entertainment, this massive festival highlights over 100 booths featuring food, merch, and games, plus 25 stage performances and a Pokémon carnival.
Until Sept 9; Sat noon-9pm, Sun noon-8pm at National Stadium.
Jungle Chase Game & Outdoor Movie Drive-in
Round up your family for a day of outdoor safari fun with a huge inflatable obstacle course and an outdoor drive-in screening of the Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle.
4pm-late at White Sands. $10/vehicle; $2/entry to the picnic area.
With the official launch of Lazada’s LazMall – which sells authentic and original branded products with a 15-day return policy – you can browse through more than 1,000 labels and loads of product listings to spend all your hard-earned money on. And to celebrate, the online retail platform is debuting its “9.9” campaign for discounts and deals, alongside “surprise boxes” by 99 brands and promos through games on the app.
Midnight till stocks run out on Lazada.
Rock out to beats by Wormrot, Disco Hue, Azerath, and Test the Divide at Lasalle’s three different stages this weekend.
3pm-late at Lasalle’s Creative Cube and Flexible Performance Space. Free.
Singapore Toy, Game & Comic Convention
The pop culture fair returns yet again with visits from Marvel creators and artists to celebrate the Marvel Cinematic Universe’s 10th anniversary, as well as cosplayers, exclusive merch, and more.
Until Sept 9; 10am-8pm at Marina Bay Sands Expo, Halls D, E, F. One-day pass $10-$25, two-day pass $15-$32.
The zoo opens its doors to non-electronic mobility devices like bicycles, scooters, and skateboards for the day (or you could rent a two-wheeler from SG Bikes), with sports challenges going on at Pavilion by the Lake’s ActiveSG area.
8:30am-6pm at Singapore Zoo. Standard admission fee applies: Adults $35, children aged 3-12 $23.
Sunday, Sept 9
This street party, organized by foodpanda and Sunshine Nation, brings pop-up food stalls and bars, live bands, DJs, and wellness activities to Amoy Street for a day. Besides free fitness classes by F45 Training, Pure Yoga, and WeBarre, there’ll be wine tastings and lawn games like XXL Jenga, as well as performances by local musicians like Sam Rui and Maricelle. Plus, bites by Alati, Dumpling Darlings, Vatos Urban Tacos, Park Bench Deli, and Burger Joint, all packaged in biodegradable containers made of sugarcane pulp.
Noon-10pm at Amoy St. Free.
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