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The sky was bright when Spanish art company La Fura dels Baus performed Dreams in Flight last weekend at Padang, an open field just across Singapore's iconic theater building The Esplanade.
The performance combined contemporary music, glamorous lighting and acrobatic shows including one involving 36 volunteers.
Dreams in Flight began with a drama by two artists. Their play was projected with a spotlight onto a big white screen before a crowd estimated at 5,000 people, creating a shadow puppet-like show.
The shadowy show featured people's daily activities from early in the morning to late at night when people go to bed and dream.
The crowd cheered ecstatically when a huge metal wheel was pulled out from behind the wide screen. It was the beginning of a dream sequence -- Dreams in Flight.
Then, it continued with an acrobatic show by 10 artists on the huge, rotating wheel, suspended about 50 meters high from a mobile crane.
The stimulating play, combined with interchangeable colorful lighting and loud music, offered an exciting show to the audience.
Finishing the wheel-in-the-air-show, La Fura dels Baus proceeded with another performance involving 36 volunteers. Slung from the crane by a harness, the volunteers formed a fascinating human net in the air.
Unlike any other art performances that generally present art only, Dreams in Flight combined art and acrobatics. This has highlighted Singapore's commitment to developing itself as a cultural center in the region.
"Through this festival, we are trying to build a distinctive global city of the arts," said festival director Goh Ching Lee.
The choice of an acrobatic art show by the Spanish company to open the month-long festival underlined a vast choice of art works during this year's event, the 30th Singapore Arts Festival.
An invigorating line-up of art shows include contemporary dance, classical theater and contemporary music.
In total, as many as 1,900 artists from over 27 countries will be performing in 22 main productions and 400 free performances, exhibitions and special events.
Singaporean singer-turned-director Mark Chan, who was due to perform Dreaming of Kuanyin, Meeting Madonna on June 1-2, said his play was about the unresolved collisions between inner spirituality and urban profanity in modern life.
Chan worked in collaboration with choreographer Angela Liong. This was their first joint effort.
Imagining the triangular encounter of the merciful bodhisattva Kuanyin, the compassionate Virgin Mary and the high priestess of pop icon Madonna, seven dancers and three musicians plus video art by Brian Gothong Tan portray worlds of human and heavenly visions.
"This is my sixth participation in the Singapore Arts Festival," said Chan.
Separately, young director Chong Tze Chien said that he and his colleagues at The Finger Players would play Wong Kar Wai Dreams on June 13-15.
In his performance, Chien who won last year's Young Artist Award, blends human actors, puppetry and lush visuals.
The participation of younger Singaporean artists, like Chien, in the festival means that the city-state has been successful in encouraging the young generation to improve their work.
Shows by young artists have been drawing large, young audiences.
"A survey shows that 70 percent of the audience at the last festival were young people," said Nigel Sim of Singapore's National Arts Council (NAC).
This could be a positive sign that Singapore is developing as a capital of modern art in the region.
The Singapore Arts Festival will run through June 24.
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