da:ns festival 2015 Impulse House Programme

Festival Commission and Residency

– a backstage site-specific work

by Kim Jae Duk & T.H.E Dance Company Korea / Singapore 9 & 16 Oct 2015, Fri, 7.30pm & 10.30pm 10 & 17 Oct 2015, Sat, 3pm & 9pm 11 & 18 Oct 2015, Sun, 3pm & 7pm

1hr, no intermission

DA:NS TURNS

Photo by Bernie Ng

Esplanade Backstage

About Esplanade – Theatres on the Bay Esplanade is Singapore’s national performing arts centre and one of the busiest arts centres in the world. Since its opening in 2002, the centre has presented more than 31,000 performances, drawing an audience of 22 million patrons and 84 million visitors. This architectural icon, with its distinctive twin shells, houses world-class performance spaces complemented by a comprehensive range of professional support services. Its two main venues are the 1,600-seat Concert Hall and a Theatre with a capacity of 2,000. In March 2014, Esplanade’s Concert Hall was listed as one of the “world’s 15 most beautiful concert halls” by Hamburg-based building data company Emporis.

Esplanade’s vision is to be a performing arts centre for everyone and it seeks to enrich the lives of its community through the arts. The centre’s programming is guided by its mission – to entertain, engage, educate and inspire.

Its year-long arts calendar of about 3,000 performances presented by Esplanade, its collaboration partners and hirers cater to diverse audiences in Singapore and span different cultures, languages and genres including dance, music, theatre, visual arts and more. More than 70% of the shows that take place each year at the centre are non-ticketed. In May 2015, Esplanade was chosen as one of SG Heart Map’s 50 special places.

Esplanade regularly presents world-renowned companies and artists that attract international attention and add to Singapore’s cultural vibrancy. The centre is also a popular performance home for arts groups and commercial presenters who hire its venues to stage a wide range of programmes. These carefully curated presentations complement Esplanade’s own diverse offerings for audiences.

Esplanade works in close partnership with local, regional and international artists to develop artistic capabilities, push artistic boundaries and engage audiences. The centre supports the creation of artistic content and develops technical capabilities for the industry nationally.

Esplanade – Theatres on the Bay is operated by The Esplanade Co Ltd, which is a not-for-profit organisation, a registered Charity and an Institution of a Public Character.

Visit www.esplanade.com for more information.

Board Members Mr Lee Tzu Yang (Chairman) Mr Benson Puah (Chief Executive Officer) Dr Beh Swan Gin Mrs Rosa Daniel Ms Kathy Lai Dr Jennifer Lee

Mrs Christine Ong Mr Ramlee Bin Buang Ms Saw Phaik Hwa Mrs Mildred Tan-Sim Beng Mei Mr Yap Chee Meng Mr Andre Yeap

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Please note that photographs and videos of patrons may be taken at this event for use in our archival and publicity material.

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Festival Message Where has the time gone? da:ns festival turns 10 this year and it seems like only yesterday when we presented our first edition.

At da:ns festival, our sense of time shifts. As we watch bodies move on stage, or as we ourselves dance, time as we know it, is suspended, and we become attuned to time driven by the body and its unique rhythms in movement. Over the years, we hope the festival has given you several experiences and memories that have expanded your sense of movement, and opened you up to different expressions of dance.

The festival team has had the pleasure of creating this dedicated event, growing a myriad of platforms in our festival that support the development of dance. To encourage more people of all ages to try dancing, we have worked with Singapore dance studios to provide fun and easy dance lessons that everyone can enjoy both inside our rehearsal studio, outdoors along our waterfront and around Singapore. Last year, we welcomed over 28,000 participants to these sessions and the overall da:ns festival has doubled in audience size since it’s first year.

To support the creation of new dance works, da:ns festival commissions, co-produces and provides residencies for artists. This has led to long-lasting relationships with artists we deeply admire for their dedication and creativity, and enabled 23 new dance creations, the majority from Asian dance-makers.

So this year, for our special 10th anniversary, we have invited several of these artists to celebrate this special occasion with us, some of whom are marking significant milestones in their own personal careers. We host the legendary Sylvie Guillem, who returns to da:ns festival with her final world tour before retiring from 35 years of dancing, while Singapore choreographer Kuik Swee Boon creates a work that brings together leading dance-makers in their 40s back to the stage.

The festival would have not been possible without our supportive audience of dance lovers, the dance-makers who continually inspire us, our festival sponsors and partners who have shared our belief in the significance of dance in our lives, and our group of dedicated festival volunteers—the da:ns Kaki Ambassadors.

With deep gratitude to everyone— thank you for being part of 10 years of da:ns festival together.

Faith Tan Producer da:ns festival

Esplanade’s da:ns festival programming team (L-–R: Marlene Ditzig, Iris Cheung, Faith Tan, Emily J Hoe, Rydwan Anwar, Christel Hon & Shireen Abdullah.

Not in photo: Suhana Laila Abdul Shukur, Fezhah Maznan & Joyce Yao)

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Choreographer’s

Message As I narrate these thoughts, it is only two days before I am due to arrive in Singapore, and embark on a madcap rehearsal schedule with T.H.E in order to create Impulse. Because of the high-traffic, publicly accessible spaces that we are using, our working hours are unusual and mostly nocturnal. It is with equal parts apprehension and excitement that I arrive at the start of my five-week long residency.

My approach to Impulse is relatively simple: it is a site-specific piece shaped upon the oriental understanding of space. As opposed to the western focus of applying objects corresponding to movement and the dancer’s physicality, an oriental focus appreciates space itself; be it the air, wind, breath, or the atmosphere that envelops all human interaction.

The method for creating this piece focuses upon a common motif of “combining”. I wanted to mirror the multiculturalism of Singapore with complex but earthy layers of dance movement and music composed with oriental instruments. As the work’s choreographer and composer, I crafted the music with each of the four spaces in mind. The beauty of its arrangement lies in exposing their individual attributes and quirks—the spaces as much as the dancers.

Enjoy!

Kim Jae Duk 7 September 2015

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Choreographer

About

Kim Jae Duk As T.H.E Dance Company’s very first resident choreographer, Kim Jae Duk’s works have been described by critics as among some of the most attention grabbing, refreshing and innovative, straddling both the pop and artistic realms. Kim holds a Master’s in choreography from Korea National University of the Arts, and is currently pursuing a PhD in dance studies at Sungkyunkwan University. He was previously a member of LDP Dance Company and is currently Creative Director and Choreographer with Modern Table Dance Company. In 2007 he received the third prize from Seoul International Dance Concours and the first prize in choreography from Seoul Dance Festival. His 2010 piece, Darkness Pumba, was selected for the PAMS CHOICE award.

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Evelyn Toh attended the Singapore Ballet Academy while performing with Singapore Dance Theatre and John Mead Dance Company (previously MI Arts). She competed in Perth’s Theatrical Festival finishing first in the National and Neo-Classical dance categories. On a National Arts Council Overseas scholarship, Evelyn graduated from the Boston Conservatory magna cum laude, with additional support from the Al and Pat Houston scholarship, Jan Veen scholarship and Anamarie Sarazin award. Evelyn has worked as a guest artist at BalletRox, Nimbus Dance Works, and MOMIX with which she toured extensively. She joined T.H.E Dance Company in April 2014.

Evelyn Toh

DANCERS

Born in Japan, Kei Ushiroda received her training at Arts Umbrella in Vancouver, Canada and The Ailey School in New York. After moving back to Japan, she joined Noism under Jo Kanamori in Niigata for 3 years, and performed in Japan, Paris and Moscow.

She also has performed choreography by Tero Saarinen, Alessio Silvestrin, Jo Kanamori, Aiichiro Miyagawa, Roberto Campanella, Edgar Zendejas and Emily Molnar. In September 2014, Kei joined T.H.E Dance Company.

Kei Ushiroda Wu Mi received his dance training at the LASALLE College of the Arts in Singapore and Hong Kong Academy for Performing Arts.

He danced with Singapore Dance Theatre for four years as a First Soloist, taking on principal roles in Romeo and Juliet, Sleeping Beauty, Giselle, amongst others. He has worked with renowned choreographers such as David Dawson, Jorma Elo, Stanton Welch, Nils Christe, Edwaard Liang and Xing Liang. Wu Mi joined T.H.E Dance Company in August 2011, and has since danced and toured with T.H.E extensively.

Photos by Bernie Ng

Wu Mi

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Zhuo Zihao received his contemporary dance training at LASALLE College of the Arts in Singapore and the Hong Kong Academy for Performing Arts, both under scholarship. He has worked with various choreographers including Alberto Del-Saz, Robert Tannion, CharlotteBoyd Christensen, and Cheng Tsung-Lung. He was also a resident artist with Odyssey Dance Theatre in Singapore. As a founding member of T.H.E Dance Company, he has performed in all the company’s works since its establishment as well as featured his solo work at the CONTACT Contemporary Dance Festival 2010, an annual dance intensive initiated by T.H.E. In 2012, Zihao was conferred the Young Artist Award (Dance) by Singapore’s National Arts Council.

Zhuo Zihao

ABOUT T.H.E Dance Company

Photo by Bernie Ng

Biographies

The Human Expression Dance Company, or T.H.E Dance Company was founded in September 2008 by artistic director Kuik Swee Boon. Since then, T.H.E has performed in most major local arts festivals and prestigious international festivals such as Les Hivernales (Avignon), SIDance (South Korea), and Beijing Dance Festival. T.H.E has steadily built a strong base of support amongst local audiences and the arts community. It continues to engage with a growing audience through works that delve deep into the human condition, and with greater efforts in education, training and outreach.

Chia Poh Hian is a graduate of the London Contemporary Dance School (LCDS), with a First Class Honours degree in contemporary dance. She has performed at international venues such as Buckingham Palace and Sadler’s Wells (UK), Verona, Italy, Paris and France, as well as collaborated across disciplines for events such as the Cloud Dance Festival, City of London Festival and BIG Dance Festival (UK).

Poh Hian has worked with and is mentored by artists such as Anthony Van Laast, Chisato Ohno, Hofesh Shechter, Itamar Serussi, Richard Alston and Kuik Swee Boon. She was trained at Singapore Ballet Academy, NAFA School of Young Talents, and SOTA Singapore.

Poh Hian was a recipient of the Singapore A p p r e nt i c e D anc e r National Arts Council Scholarship (Overseas) and the LCDS Peggy Hawkins Scholarship Fund Award for outstanding and technical ability and performance.

Chia Poh Hian

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Photo by Bernie Ng

Brandon Khoo began his training in Chinese dance at Soka Gakkai Malaysia Association at age 13. He joined the Nanyang Academy of Fine Arts’ (NAFA) Diploma in Dance Programme in 2012, and is a recipient of the NAFA scholarship for 2014 and 2015. As a student dancer he participated in a work choreographed by Viv Phua Mui Ling, which won the Gold Medal at the Asia Youth Dance Festival 2013 in Hong Kong.

Brandon graduated from NAFA in 2015 and joined T.H.E Dance Company as an apprentice dancer in July.

brandon khoo

Photo by Bernie Ng

A p p r e nt i c e D anc e r

Anthea Seah trained in Chinese Dance with Dance Horizon Troupe, and in street, jazz and contemporary dance. She holds a BA(Hons) Dance degree at LASALLE College of the Arts where she has worked with Singapore artists Albert Tiong, Melissa Quek and Susan Yeung, and international artists MarieGabrielle Rotie, Akiko Kitamura (Leni-Basso) and Wu Yi San (Cloud Gate Dance Theatre, CCDC). Anthea also produces work and dances with a semi-professional collective, Sigma Dance.

Her independent works have been featured in short films. Anthea was part of T.H.E’s semiprofessional youth wing T.H.E Second Company, before becoming an apprentice dancer in the main company in April 2015.

Anthea Seah

Photo by Shining Goh

A p p r e nt i c e D anc e r

Terence is a graduate of the Nanyang Academy of Fine Arts (NAFA), and Conservatory of Dance at SUNY Purchase, where he obtained his BFA in Dance. During his time at NAFA, Terence was awarded the Ngee Ann Kongsi scholarship in his second and third year of studies, a full scholarship to attend the M1 CONTACT Contemporary Dance Festival 2012, and a scholarship for the CSTD Summer School 2013. He has worked with various local and international choreographers such as Jeffrey Tan, Ryan Tan, Wu Chien-Wei, James Cousins, Jonathan Guillarme, Wallie Wolfgruber, Larry Clark, MADboots dance co., Stuart Loungway and Azsure Barton.

terence pek p r o j e ct D anc e r

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stage “LIVE”

Andy Lim is a lighting designer who has worked extensively locally and abroad on theatre and dance productions, art installations and film. His works have been featured in major local and international performing arts festivals including Singapore Arts Festival (Singapore), Kunsten Festival Des Arts (Belgium), Theatre Der Welt (Germany), 54th Venice Biennale (Italy), Festival/Tokyo & Mori Arts Museum (Japan), SIDance (Korea).

He has designed for choreographers, directors and artists such as Emmanuèle Phuon, Edwaard Liang, Xing Liang,

shining goh Shining Goh has been active in managing dance productions that include both professional and collegiate productions.

She has done 132 productions over the past 11 years.

Her stage management skills are evidenced through the many productions she has been engaged in. She built her resume steadily working on many local and overseas festivals: 2006, 2009, 2010 & 2013 editions of M1 Singapore Fringe Festival; 2006, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013 and 2014 editions of NUS Arts Festival, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009 & 2011 editions of Singapore Arts Festival; 2007, 2009, 2012 & 2013 editions of Esplanade’s da:ns festival. 4th and 8th Guangdong Modern Dance Festival (Guangzhou, China), 17th Changmu Dance Festival (Goyang, Korea),

Gordon Lai Prior to taking on roles in technical theatre, Gordon was a Project Dancer with Re:Dance Theatre and Frontier Danceland.

Since 2012, he has consistently undertaken stage manager or assistant stage manager roles with the most active and prolific dance companies in Singapore, including Singapore Dance Theatre, T.H.E Dance Company /T.H.E Second Company, Re:Dance Theatre,

l i g ht i n g c o nsu ltant Eko Supriyanto, Lim Fei Shen, Dr Caren Carino, Jamie Redfern, Ong Keng Sen, Natalie Hennedige, Annemarie Prins, Nikolai Foster, and Ho Tzu Nyen.

In addition to design, Andy takes on the role of Technical Director/Manager for theatre companies such as TheatreWorks, Cake Theatrical Productions, Drama Box, and Amrita Performing Arts (Cambodia).

He also collaborates frequently with ARTFACTORY, specialising in curators and working with artists, institutions to provide creative technical solutions for art installations.

Pr o duct i o n Mana g e r SiDance Festival 2013 (Seoul, Korea), 17th and 18th Contemporary Dance Festival (Bytom, Poland), 34th les hivernales, festival de danse (Avignon, France), Beijing Dance Festival (Beijing, China), 32nd Oriente Occidente Festival (Rovereto, Italy) & Singapour FestivArts (Paris, France).

She has had the opportunity to work with various companies such as RawMoves (2012–2013), Frontier Danceland (2010– 2012), Re:Dance Theatre (2012–2013) and The Arts Fission Company (2005 – 2012).

Creative Team

Andy Lim

She has toured extensively with T.H.E Dance Company and worked in all their local/overseas productions since its establishment. Since 2013, she has been Production Stage Manager with T.H.E Dance Company.

S ta g e Mana g e r Frontier Danceland, Arts Fission, and Raw Moves. Outside of dance, Gordon has also worked with companies and productions as diverse as Ho Tzu Nyen’s Ten Thousand Tigers, the Singapore Repertory Theatre, DramaBox, Flamenco Sin Fronteras, and festivals including the M1 CONTACT Contemporary Dance Festival, Huayi – Chinese Festival of the Arts, and da:ns festival.

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www.braunbuffel.com

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first time site-specific

It is the that a (dance) work will be presented at the Esplanade.

Jae Duk is T.H.E Dance Company’s

very first resident choreographer,

It is T.H.E’s very first site-specific work, and the

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and has been working with T.H.E since 2010. He creates at least one new work for T.H.E each year, and Impulse is his seventh work for the company.

Back home, Jae Duk is artistic director of Modern Table, a contemporary dance company that consists solely of male dancers.

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Chia Poh Hian and Brandon Khoo, since joining the company this year.

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Each time he returns, Jae Duk gains much from the experience – including a command of Korean-inflected English that increases in clarity.

The word most frequently used in this year’s Impulse?

Honest.

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local debut of two dancers,

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This makes T.H.E’s female dancers the only ones he has worked extensively with.

The cleaning aunties and uncles encountering the rehearsals (and detoured route) at Basement 2 are the dancers’ very first and most candid ‘live’ audience’ – reactions include bemusement, curiosity, annoyance and sheer nonchalance.

Kim Jae Duk D anc e rs

Anthea Seah Brandon Khoo Chia Poh Hian Evelyn Toh Kei Ushiroda Terence pek Wu Mi Zhuo Zihao

L i g ht i n g C o nsu ltant

stage ”LIVE”

Production List

C h o r e o g ra p h y Or i g i na l Mus i c C o m p o s i t i o n & A rran g e m e nt

Pr o duct i o n Mana g e r

Shining Goh S ta g e Mana g e r

Gordon Lai

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Esplanade &Me

Be Involved. Be Engaged. Be Entertained.

Discover the joy of dance.

It’s more than a card for arts lovers; it’s your pass to experience the arts, go behind the scenes and a way to support the arts.

31 Dec 2016

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Sign up now to get your card! www.esplanade.com

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UEN: 199205206G Information correct at time of print.

da : ns f e st i v a l 2 O 1 5 ca l e ndar

CENTRESTAGE

9 OCT FRI

1O OCT SAT

11 OCT SUN

12 OCT MON

TANGO LEGENDS

NEDERLANDS DANS THEATER 2

BY MARIELA MALDONADO AND PABLO SOSA

AN EVENING OF FIVE WORKS

9 & 10 Oct 7.30pm

9 & 10 Oct 8pm

ESPLANADE CONCERT HALL

ESPLANADE THEATRE

IMPULSE

四十不惑

by Kim Jae Duk & T.H.E Dance Company

by Kuik Swee Boon, Silvia Yong, Jeffrey Tan & Albert Tiong

10 Oct, 8.30pm 11 OCT, 8pm

9 & 16 OCT, 7.30pm & 10.30PM 10 & 17 OCT, 3PM & 9pm 11 & 18 OCT, 3PM & 7pm

ESPLANADE THEATRE STUDIO

ESPLANADE BACKSTAGE

RASAS

NEXT GENERATION

SHIFT

ABOVE 4O

FREE

13 OCT TUE

THE NEXT GENERATION

by Nanyang Academy of Fine Arts & LASALLE College of the Arts

15 & 16 OCT, 7.30pm 17 OCT, 2PM ESPLANADE RECITAL STUDIO

NORA DANCE EXPLORED

JAVANESE COURT DANCES

by Nora Thummanit Thaksin University Group

by Soerya Soemirat Mangkunegaran Royal Palace OUTDOOR THEATRE

9 & 11 Oct, 7.15pm & 8.30PM 10 OCT, 6PM, 7.15pm & 8.30PM

9 & 11 Oct, 7.30pm & 9PM 10 OCT, 6.30PM, 7.30pm & 9PM

CONCOURSE

CONCOURSE

WHAT’S YOUR MOVE?

FREE

12 & 13 Oct, 7.15pm & 8.15PM

FRIDAY I’M IN LOVE

WALTZ

by The DanceSport Academy

SATURDAY NIGHT FEVER

SALSA

by ACTFA

SUNDAY FUNDAY

JIVE

by The DanceSport Academy

9 Oct, 8PM

10 Oct, 8PM

11 Oct, 8PM

9 Oct, 9.30PM

10 Oct, 9.30PM

11 Oct, 9.30PM

STAGE@POWERHOUSE

STAGE@POWERHOUSE

Tango

MILONGA

BACHATA by ACTFA

FLAMENCO by FLAMENCO SIN FRONTERAS

9 Oct, 10.30PM

DA:NS FUN WORKSHOPS & TALKS

FREE

STAGE@POWERHOUSE

PICTURE THIS!

9 & 10 Oct, 7PM 11 OCT, 6PM UPPER CONCOURSE

SHALL WE DANCE?

9 - 11 Oct, 6.30PM & 7.45PM VARIOUS LOCATIONS AROUND ESPLANADE

DANCES OF THE JAVANESE COURT

by Rury Avianti

10 Oct, 4.30PM library@esplanade

FREE

introduction to traditional javanese dance workshop

by Soerya Soemirat Mangkunegaran Royal Palace

11 Oct, 11aM esplanade rehearsal studio

www . dansf e st i v a l . c o m 14 14OCT, OCTTUE WED

15 OCT, WED THU 16 OCT, 15 OCT 16THU OCT

FRI

17 OCT,17 FRIOCT

18 SAT

OCT, SAT OCT, SUN 18 OCT19 SUN

TOROBAKA

SYLVIE GUILLEM

LIFE IN PROGRESS

BY Akram Khan and Israel Galván

13 & 14 Oct 8pm

16 & 17 Oct 8pm

ESPLANADE THEATRE

ESPLANADE THEATRE

CRY JAILOLO

SOFTMACHINE

by Eko Supriyanto

14 & 15 Oct 8pm

by CHOY KA FAI

17 & 18 Oct 3PM & 8pm

ESPLANADE THEATRE STUDIO

World Dance Alliance Singapore

ESPLANADE THEATRE STUDIO

ASIA PACIFIC DANCE BRIDGE

by MACOBA Dance Company, Fairul Zahid/ASWARA, Modern Table CompanY, T.T.C Dance, Frontier Danceland, Danang Pamungkas and Yvonne Ng

18 Oct, 6pm ESPLANADE RECITAL STUDIO

ODISSI

MALAY COURT DANCES

Harao Seigonnabi

by ASWARA Dance Company

Divine Dances & Songs of Merrymaking

by Laihui Ensemble

14 & 15 Oct, 7.15pm & 8.15PM

16 & 18 Oct, 7.15pm & 8.30PM 17 OCT, 6PM, 7.15pm & 8.30PM

16 & 18 Oct, 7.30pm & 9PM 17 OCT, 6.30PM, 7.30pm & 9PM

CONCOURSE

CONCOURSE

OUTDOOR THEATRE

by Chowk Productions

FRIDAY I’M IN LOVE

LINDY HOP

by JAZZ INC

16 Oct, 8PM

CHARLESTON

by JAZZ INC

by JAZZ INC

17 Oct, 8PM

18 Oct, 8PM

K-POP

STREET DANCE BOLLYWOOD

by CAIUS COALITION

by BOLLYBEATZ

18 Oct, 9.30PM

STAGE@POWERHOUSE

STAGE@POWERHOUSE

STAGE@POWERHOUSE

UPPER CONCOURSE

esplanade concert hall

SUNDAY FUNDAY

17 Oct, 9.30PM

PICTURE THIS!

15 Oct, 7.30PM

HIP HOP

by DANZ PEOPLE

16 Oct, 9.30PM

16 & 17 Oct, 7PM 18 OCT, 6PM

IN CONVERSATION WITH SYLVIE GUILLEM

SATURDAY NIGHT FEVER

SHALL WE DANCE?

16 - 18 Oct, 6.30PM & 7.45PM VARIOUS LOCATIONS AROUND ESPLANADE