Wan Qing Mid-Autumn Festival 2020 Digital Edition

Taking place online this year, the Wan Qing Mid-Autumn Festival will feature well-loved family-friendly programmes that spotlight Mid-Autumn customs and cultural heritage, as well as an outdoor installation featuring four large roly-poly fish lanterns!

The public can look forward to a variety of online activities including cooking tutorials to make delicious desserts like pulot hitam snowskin mooncake, virtual guided tours by talented student docents, and even enjoy a medley of moon-themed songs by local acapella group The Apex Project!

Highlights:

Lantern Installation: “Rolling in Abundance”

Date: 15 September – 11 October
Time: 10.00am – 9.00pm (daily)

Produced by Hong Kong artist Sunny Tam of the collectible label, 78JO in collaboration with the Sun Yat Sen Nanyang Memorial Hall, “Rolling in Abundance” is an outdoor installation featuring four large roly-poly fish lanterns. In Chinese culture, fishes (“yu”) symbolise completeness and abundance, as it is a homonym for the Mandarin word for “abundance” (“yu”). The rounded nature of the design is doubly symbolic, as roundness (“yuan”) also sounds similar to the Mandarin word for “reunion” (“tuan yuan”), and pays homage to the full and bright mid-autumn moon.

“Rolling in Abundance” utilises wordplay to present traditional beliefs and values in a modern context, and encourages deeper understanding and appreciation of the beauty of the Chinese language. More importantly, in these trying times, the installation embodies our hope for more abundant years to come, and gives thanks as we reunite with families and loved ones during Phase 2 of Singapore’s circuit breaker period.

Wan Qing Yuan Gives Back: Mid-Autumn Festival Edition

Date: 7 to 9 September

Mid-Autumn Festival is a time of joyous union with family and friends. With safe distancing measures in place, the celebrations may feel different this year, but it doesn’t mean that we are any less connected. In the spirit of giving back to the community, the Memorial Hall has collaborated with InterContinental Singapore, AllsWell Singapore, Anderson Secondary School and St. Margaret’s Secondary School to distribute 200 festive care packages to those in need.

In the Kitchen with Chef Eric Neo: Pulot Hitam Snowskin Mooncake

Date: 4 October 2020

Mid-Autumn Festival won’t be complete without mooncakes, which are Chinese pastries traditionally filled with a sweet lotus paste. Join us in the kitchen with Chef Eric Neo from InterContinental Singapore and Nicole Chang Min as they guide you through the steps to create a unique Mid-Autumn treat bursting with local flavour – Pulot Hitam Snowskin Mooncake!  Will Nicole be able to pass Chef Eric’s culinary challenge and create her very own Pulot Hitam Snowskin Mooncake in record time? Watch this video to find out!

Mid-Autumn Craft Tutorial: Create Your Own Bunny Lantern

Date: 7 October 2020

Lighting lanterns is a popular traditional activity associated with the Mid-Autumn Festival – they chase away the darkness, light the way home at night, and represent a desire for union and the aspiration for a better life. Most importantly, lighting lanterns add a touch of festivity and are great fun for all ages! Create your own bunny lantern in this DIY Mid-Autumn craft tutorial using recycled materials found at home for an unique Mid-Autumn experience.

Mid-Autumn Tales: “Happy Mooncake Festival, Elena!”

Date: 21 September 2020

Do you know why we eat mooncakes during the Mid-Autumn Festival, or how the legend of Chang’E came to be? Explore the origins of Mid-Autumn Festival at this special interactive storytelling session and learn more about the connection between the Moon Goddess, Jade Rabbit, and our much-loved mooncakes!

Join Karen Lim, actress, storyteller and FLY Entertainment Artiste, as she reads ‘Happy Mooncake Festival Elena!’, written by Dingli Stevens, illustrated by Liang Kun and published by Armour Publishing. Embark on a magical journey with Elena and her new friend Bunny, as they learn more about Mid-Autumn Festival and why mooncakes taste so yummy! Pay attention to the story and see if you can answer our quiz questions along the way.

Music at Monuments – NHB x SCCC

Date: 24 September 2020

Bask in the voices of local a cappella band The Apex Project as they present a medley of moon-themed songs to celebrate Mid-Autumn Festival at Sun Yat Sen Nanyang Memorial Hall, Singapore’s 33rd National Monument! Co-presented by the Preservation of Sites & Monuments division of the National Heritage Board and Singapore Chinese Cultural Centre, this is the first of the Music at Monuments – NHB x SCCC series which features our homegrown talents performing curated tunes at our National Monuments.