This year’s NDP to include flying performers, indoor fireworks

SINGAPORE — Making use of the partially enclosed setting of the National Stadium, the National Day Parade (NDP) show this year will feature flying performers and props, including a “Sky City” comprising 15, six-storey-high blocks, hoisted above the stage.

There will also be indoor and outdoor fireworks displays at the end of the show on Aug 9, and the Sky City will transform into a huge tree to highlight how rooted the nation is to its beliefs and values, as Singaporeans journey into the future together.

At a media briefing on Wednesday (July 13), the NDP’s show committee said the show will be told through six different acts that start with the story of local folk hero Badang and how the Singapore Stone — an ancient relic on display at the National Museum of Singapore and said to be linked to the Badang legend — came to be.

In one sequence, Badang, renowned for his physical strength and the subject of a 1962 film, will fly up and break a prop boulder into pieces.

“The legend of Badang was a tale of courage, strength and resilience — a young fisherman who had the courage to confront a fearsome water spirit and had the strength and resilience to serve out his strength for the villagers and his king and eventually his country,” said creative director of the show, Ms Beatrice Chia-Richmond.

Mr Rizman Putra Ahmad Ali, who will be portraying the folk hero, added: “Badang is a representation for all of us in Singapore.”

Sky City, meanwhile, will be mapped with 3D projections with the help of real-time tracking technology to display Singapore’s iconic landmarks, such as the Changi Control Tower. The chairman of the show committee, Senior Lieutenant Colonel (SLTC) Jason See, said: “We literally want to build our Singapore of tomorrow inside the National Stadium in front of our audience during the show segment itself.” 

The final act will see over 150 people with disabilities, from voluntary welfare organisations, hand-signing to a performance of NDP favourite tunes, such as Home and Count on me, Singapore.
SLTC See said the organisers hope that the final act will encourage all Singaporeans watching the show — not just the ones at the stadium  — to learn and sing the songs using hand-signing as a “unifying gesture ... of how we can all come together to build a more caring and inclusive Singapore”.

Lead performer Neoh Yew Kim said the segment will enable people with special needs to “show our abilities, rather than our disabilities”.

“I feel that the NDP is a very good platform for us because all Singaporeans are included in this event,” said Ms Neoh, who is from the Singapore Association for the Deaf, in sign language.

SLTC See added: “Anchored on our values and love for Singapore, the show celebrates our rich and diverse heritage, the harmony we have enjoyed, and the importance of building a kind and gracious society which embraces people from all walks of life.” ILIYAS JUANDA