From Singapore to Singaporean: The Bicentennial Experience

We re-told the last 700 years of Singapore’s history in new and compelling ways. Fortifying national sentiments in stories, this was a major production that required us to work with multidisciplinary collaborators.

Singapore to Singaporean: The Bicentennial Experience was dedicated to the remembrance of two hundred years of history that made a nation, with messages crafted, curated and devoted to its people. This two-part showcase beckoned with stimulating perspectives into history told in a variety of formats, bringing to life snippets of history going as far back as 1299.

to engage
From Singapore to Singaporean takes visitors on a journey through time to explore history as a series of visually audacious yet emotionally engaging adventures. Each act was conceptualised as a unique, exhilarating dive into Singapore’s past. Designed to resonate with visitors of all ages, the storytelling tone was intended to foster a participatory atmosphere and break the fourth wall, so that visitors would feel more like eyewitnesses, rather than simply passive observers.

to inspire
The team set out to tell a story that would spark curiosity in people, and encourage them to embark on a journey of discovery. Split into five acts spread over two levels of the Fort Canning Centre, the hour-long experience reaches back over a thousand years in time. The prologue opens on a rain installation that reverses dramatically to symbolise the journey into the distant past. This sets the scene for the dramatic rise and fall of settlements and port-cities across South-east Asia. The opening is mirrored in an emotionally charged finale on a rain-soaked Padang, with dark clouds giving way to warm sunshine over the modern metropolis Singapore has become.