The Singapore Arts Festival is inaugurated

The Singapore Arts Festival (SAF) was inaugurated on 18 May 1999 following the merger of the Festival of Arts with the Festival of Asian Performing Arts (FAPA).^[1] Today, the SAF is recognised as the nation’s flagship annual arts event showcasing the “best of the artistic and aesthetic in the performing arts in Singapore and the rest of the world.”^[2]

The Festival of Arts was established in 1977. Its initial launch, organised by the Ministry of Education (and the then Ministry of Culture subsequently), saw a week of sold-out shows comprising 1,700 performers.^[3] However, this festival came to demonstrate an “ever-increasing obsession … [with] stag[ing] blockbusters that would heighten its positioning in the global arena.”^[4] Critics thus charged that the festival marginalised local and Asian artistic practices.^[5]

In response, the National Arts Council (NAC) established FAPA, which emphasised regional art forms, to counterbalance the Festival of Arts’ Western-centric programming.^[6] The Festival of Arts and FAPA were organised as biennial counterparts held on alternate years.^[7] However, the FAPA’s first run in 1993 and penultimate 1995 run suffered from poor attendance despite ticket concessions.^[8] It was terminated after its 1997 edition.^[9]

Under the NAC’s auspices, the FAPA and Festival of Arts were subsequently merged in 1999 to form the annual SAF.^[10] The SAF inherited and unified the FAPA’s regional focus with the Festival of Arts’ global thrust. Accordingly, the SAF commissioned a new logo designed by Batey Ads and a televised commercial directed by local filmmaker Eric Khoo.^[11] Goh Ching Lee, an NAC senior director, was appointed as the festival’s new director.^[12] The NAC was commended by then-President Ong Teng Cheong for enriching Singapore’s arts scene.^[13]  

The new festival opened at Fort Canning Park on 28 May 1999^[14] with a “fresher, more focused programme… [aggregating] homegrown, Asian, and international talent”;^[15] 60 percent of the 29 core acts hailed from Singapore and regional countries while the remaining troupes were from Europe, Australia, and America.^[16] This was in line with the SAF’s vision to “set itself apart… as an international event with a strong Asian component.”^[17] Intercultural events such as Julliard-trained Singaporean Margaret Leng Tan’s toy piano recital^[18] and the NAC-commissioned premiere of Paris-trained local composer Tan Chan Boon’s capriccio performed by Singaporean violist Jensen Lam^[19] were prominently featured. The festival closed on 20 June 1999 with a collaboration between French street-performance troupe Plasticiens Volants and the Tanjong Katong Band at Choa Chu Kang.^[20] Overall, the 1999 edition was well-received despite the economic downturn and a truncated three-week itinerary. The SAF hosted 185,250 attendees and received S$1.2 million in ticket sales.^[21]

The then-Ministry of Information and the Arts (now the Ministry of Digital Development and Information) identified the SAF as an instrumental component in the Renaissance City project, which aspires to develop Singapore into a global centre for cultural and artistic excellence.^[22]

In 2013, the NAC rebranded the SAF as the Singapore International Festival of Arts (SIFA) and established an autonomous arts management company, Arts House Limited, to oversee the SIFA.^[23]

References
1. Purushothaman, V. (2007). Making visible the invisible: Three decades of the Singapore Arts Festival (p. 66). Singapore: National Arts Council. Call no.: RSING 751.095957 PUR; Singapore Arts Festival 1999 launched. (1999, April 22). Xinhua News Agency. Retrieved from Factiva.
2. Purushothaman, 2007, p. 18.
3. A standing ovation for the Singapore public? Definitely! (1977, May 8). The Straits Times, p. 9. Retrieved from NewspaperSG; Purushothaman, 2007, pp. 37-38.
4. Purushothaman, 2007, p. 61.
5. Purushothaman, 2007, p. 63.
6. Phan, M. Y. (1993, July 31). Coming: New Asian arts fest. The Straits Times, p. 6. Retrieved from NewspaperSG; Purushothaman, 2007, p. 65.
7. Lui, J. (1993, January 10). Asian performing arts festival to replace four smaller events. The Straits Times, p. 24. Retrieved from NewspaperSG; The Straits Times, 31 Jul 1993, p. 6.
8. Purushothaman, 2007, p. 18.; Tan, H. Y. (1993, November 11). Top Asian arts groups in town, but where are the crowds? The Straits Times, p. 27. Retrieved from NewspaperSG.
9. Last performing arts fest sold 93 per cent of tickets. (1997, December 27). The Straits Times, p. 21. Retrieved from NewspaperSG.
10. Purushothaman, 2007, p. 66.; Xinhua News Agency, 22 Apr 1999.
11. Purushothaman, 2007, p. 66.
12. Phan, M. Y. (1999, May–June). To the edge of dreams. The Arts Magazine, 10. Call no.: RSING 791.095957 E; Purushothaman, 2007, p. 67.
13. Arts council lauded for ‘great job.’ (1999, May 29). The Straits Times, p. 63. Retrieved from NewspaperSG.
14. The Straits Times, 29 May 1999, p. 63.
15. Oon, C. (1999, April 23). Get ready for 3 weeks of showtime. The Straits Times, p. 4. Retrieved from NewspaperSG.
16. Xinhua News Agency, 22 Apr 1999.
17. Phan, To the edge of dreams, The Arts Magazine, 10, 1999.
18. Phan, M. Y. (1999, May–June). A daughter of the lonesome isle. The Arts Magazine, 10. Call no.: RSING 791.095957 E.
19. Ng, T. (1999, May–June). From my home. The Arts Magazine, 10. Call no.: RSING 791.095957 E.
20. Tan. S. E. (1999, June 19). Going ballastic with plastic, pyrotechnics. The Straits Times, p. 16. Retrieved from NewspaperSG. 
21. Tan, S. E. (1999, June 22). So, not good enough, ah? The Straits Times, p. 2. Retrieved from NewspaperSG.
22. Ministry of Information and the Arts. (1997, July 1). Renaissance city for information and the arts planned. The Straits Times, p. 36.; Nayar, P. (2000, March 24). The Arts Festival equation. The Business Times, p. 29. Retrieved from NewspaperSG.
23. Cheah, U. I. (2014, March 27). Manager of Arts House merges with Art Festival. The Business Times Singapore.; Nanda, A. (2014, March 27). New management for Arts House. The Straits Times. Retrieved from Factiva.