Conjuring our magical past

SINGAPORE — While this year’s Singapore Heritage Festival features the usual suspects in terms of its exhibitions and activities — whether it’s the food trails, the cultural performances, or the music performances — one exhibition that caught our eye was Magical Moments.

Held at the City Square Mall, the exhibition traces the history of magicians in Singapore who have wowed the crowd since the ’60s. These include The Great Wong, or Ng Bo Oen, acknowledged as the most important and influential magician in Singapore’s history, who did his routine in Teochew and wowed audiences with his famous “linking rings”; and of course, JC Sum and Magic Babe Ning, possibly the nation’s most eye-catching and exciting magician duo these days.

The exhibition will be capped by performances over the weekend, including a wayang kulit demonstration, puppet shows and two other shows — The Tabla Man And The Umbrella Man, and Heritage Of Magic. The former is a musical magic show, while the latter is a show featuring various facets and styles of Singapore magic past and present.

Catch Magical Moments’ shows on July 27 and 28, at the City Square Mall, Atrium, Level 1. Visit the National Heritage Festival website (http://heritagefest.org.sg) for more details.