For All The Wrong Reasons asks what it means to be stupid. How stupid can one be? How big and sad can be the consequences of stupid behaviour? Can stupidity be seen as a form of intelligence? Six talented performers challenge one another in a raucous end-of-the-pier revue at a place reminiscent of the faded grandeur of a Blackpool-like seaside town. They party, sing and dance, fight and make-up, and roll off discomforting confessional soliloquies as pretend-fairground music plays on the background.

Victoria, a Belgian production platform for experimental theatre, collaborates with Contact Theatre, Manchester’s award-winning company focussing on young adults, to produce this theatre masterpiece that is full of life’s paradoxes and absurdities.

“The success of the piece lies in its mix of emotional openness and ambiguity… spectacularly silly and touchingly simple.” – The Guardian

www.singaporeartsfest.com

Venue: Esplanade Theatre Studio, 1 Esplanade Drive
Time: 8 p.m.
Ticket Price: $38
Ticket Bookings: SISTIC 6348 5555 or www.sistic.com.sg
Presenter: Singapore Arts Festival

While researching for a film project, Italian director Gianfranco Cabiddu accidentally discovered lost footage of life in Sardinia in the 1930s. This is now vividly re-animated in this collaboration with the celebrated Italian trumpeter Paolo Fresu in Sonos È Memoria.

Music is at the core to this beautiful show. Performed live by a stellar gathering of singers and musicians that embraces the island’s robust tradition – famed Sardinian songstress Elena Ledda, and Concordu ‘e su Rosario, four men steeped in the unique polyphony of the island. With the launeddas, a distant relation of the uilleann pipes providing an expressive and haunting voice, they are joined by an island diaspora led throughout by Fresu’s lyrical trumpet, evoking Miles Davis as much as his native Sardinia.

In this paean to a forgotten island identity, the folk melodies, jazz harmonies and vocal polyphony have given Cabbiddu’s rare film a magical touch, evoking an emotional musical journey that illuminates the pride of a people, its culture and its roots.

Supported by the Italian Cultural Institute.

www.singaporeartsfest.com

Venue: Drama Centre, 100 Victoria Street, 3rd Storey, National Library
Time: 5.30 p.m. (Free film screening), 8 p.m. (Performance)
Ticket Prices: $55, $45, $35, $25
Ticket Bookings: SISTIC 6348 5555 or www.sistic.com.sg
Presenter: Singapore Arts Festival

Known for his unique vision of the human figure, Alberto Giacometti has been helmed alongside the masters of European art history. The Swiss sculptor who was also known for his association with movements such as the Surrealists and the Existentialists of modern Paris has often been cited to redefine the boundaries of sculptural forms and practices. This exhibition which showcases his drawings, sculptures and selected works from his Paris Sans Fin lithographs, also includes a special section of photographs of the artist at work by Ernst Scheidegger, eminent Swiss photographer and friend of Giacometti.

In Seeing.Feeling.Being , we explore Giacometti’s unique gaze and representations of man and his world in postwar Europe and enter the artist’s world of the contraries of reality as witnessed and experienced, amidst the ambition and anxiety for the absolute.

www.singart.com


Venue: Singapore Art Museum, 71 Bras Basah Road
Time: 10 a.m. – 7 p.m. daily
Ticket Prices: $8 (adults), $4 (students / senior citizens)
Ticket Bookings : Purchase at Museum Front Desk
Presenter: Singapore Art Museum, Alberto Giacometti Foundation, Embassy of Switzerland, Credit Suisse

The savannah comes to Singapore, courtesy of Xirriquiteulateatre Spain, when life-size giraffes start frolicking among the crowds in this choreography of wonder through public space. The gentle puppet-creatures meander through side streets and thoroughfares, recreating a dreamlike safari for all young and old.

Supported by the Embassy of the Kingdom of Spain.

Venue: Various. (Details at www.singaporeartsfest.com )
Time: various
Presenter: Singapore Arts Festival

This delightful one-of-a-kind exhibition is guaranteed to enthrall all children!

Conceived by the world-renowned Da Ponte Institute and ZOOM Children’s Museum, this award-winning exhibition invites children to playfully explore 11 themed rooms to discover the differences and similarities of everyday living in the 18th century and present time.

Young visitors are encouraged to relate to the young Mozart, identify with him and to compare themselves to him: What was Mozart actually like as a kid? What games did he play and why did he travel so much?

A wonderfully enjoyable and educational experience for both children and parents, not to be missed !

www.nationalmuseum.sg

WingTai Holdings proudly presents together with STPI the first ever exhibition of French modern master Henri Matisse (b. France, 1869-1954). Supported by the French Embassy, this exhibition comprises 52 prints, three drawings and one painting dated 1917. This rare collection which is valued at €2.5 million (est. S$5 million) comes directly from the estate of Matisse.

This exhibition of rare and fine portraitures exemplifies the artist’s relentless study of the female form and his fascination with Oriental inspired interiors and textiles. In these works, Matisse conveys the sensuality of the bare female form not through erotic detail but in the simplicity of his drawings. These simplified forms become one with their surroundings (as in the Orientalist odalisque portrayals), at the same time serving the interests of an artistic experiment in form and composition. These works highlight the virtuosity of Matisse, where the restrained handling of lines clearly embodies the spirit of the artist.

www.stpi.com.sg

In Radio & Juliet, alternative Brit-rock band Radiohead musically underscores Shakespeare’s well-known tragedy. This, however, is no regular MTV or Baz Luhrmann-style update: Opening black-and-white close-up film images of toes, eyebrows and half-hidden faces in grimy corridors tear away into a static backdrop, allowing for the ascendance of flesh-and-blood lovers.

The moment that Juliet sees Romeo lying dead next to her – this is the starting point of the performance which evolves in reverse as a retrospective of an unfulfilled love. In this intimate and powerful dance poem, choreographer Clug exposes an uncompromising, intricate and incisive body of language that distils the essence of a relationship between man and woman, between seduction and rejection, between hope and violence.

Originally hailing from Romania, award-winning Edward Clug is the house choreographer and head of ballet of Slovene National Theatre in Maribor, in Slovenia’s second largest city.

www.singaporeartsfest.com

Venue: Esplanade Theatre, 1 Esplanade Drive
Time: 8 p.m.
Ticket Prices: $105, $85, $65, $45, $35
Ticket Bookings: SISTIC 6348 5555 or www.sistic.com.sg
Presenter: Singapore Arts Festival

The Italian Film Festival, in its 8th year, presents a selection of high standard, recently released movies by internationally acclaimed directors as well as emerging talents.

Contemporary Italian film directors have proven to be extremely competent and professional. Their inspiration and commitment, as well as the passion and sense of humour that can be found in their stories, are proof that the new generation of Italian movies is as unique as its predecessor and deserving of its international fame.

The line up this year includes the following films:

• The Missing Star by Gianni Amelio (2006)
• Sacred Heart by Ferzan Ozpetek (2005)
• Along the Ridge by Kim Rossi Stuart (2006)
• A Dinner for Them to Meet by Pupi Avati (2006)
• One of Two by Eugenio Cappuccio (2006)
• Italian Dream by Sandro Baldoni (2007)
• Two-family Noir by Federico Zampaglione (2006)

In addition, the Italian Film Festival will celebrate the centennial anniversary of the famous Italian journalist and novelist, Giovanni Guareschi, by featuring the “cult” comedy series of Don Camillo e Peppone based on his novels.

www.iicsingapore.esteri.it

Venue: The Picturehouse at The Cathay Cineplex, 2 Handy Road & The Arts House, 1 Old Parliament Lane
Ticket Prices: $10 (on sale from 19 May), $ 6 for Don Camillo and Peppone films
Ticket Bookings: The Picturehouse Box Office, Level 5 or www.thepicturehouse.com.sg
The Arts House Box Office or www.theartshouse.com.sg/tickets
Presenter: The Italian Cultural Institute in partnership with the Singapore Film Society, The Picturehouse and The Arts House

Sweet’Art returns with a long tradition - fits into one of the symbols of the cultural life of Paris. The 5th edition by Parcours Saint Germain des Prés reconsiders food as the object of creation, and an iconographic art medium.

Using food as a mean of expressions other than culinary, it is a meeting place between "eating" the art and the art of imagining new ways of “eating”. Art can be enjoyed with a teaspoon. The menu reads like poetry. The gourmandise turns into a "ready-made” Marcel Duchamp. Sweet'Art is the alliance between the chief, artist, photographer and designer - the sacred ceremonial act of the food lived as an aesthetic experience.

Featuring 18 artists, Sweet’Art shows us how food can be turned into art… it ultimately changes the way we eat, drink, and be greedy about.

www.afexhibitions.blogsome.com

Venue: SG Private Banking Gallery, Alliance Française de Singapour, 1 Sarkies Road, Level 2
Time: Mon – Fri, 11am – 7pm, Sat 11am – 5pm, Closed on Sunday & Public Holidays
Ticket Prices: Free admission
Presenter: CULTURESFRANCE, French Embassy Singapore, Alliance Française de Singapour & Société Générale

Renowned photographer Jens Liebchen from Berlin accompanied more than 100 artists including Gerhard Richter, Sigmar Polke, Georg Baselitz and Neo Rauch during the process of conceiving and realising their site-specific artworks in the parliamentary buildings in Germany. The exhibition, curated by Andreas Kaernbach, goes far beyond photographic documentation – it is a psychological study of politics and artistry at work and of their encounter in the political realm.

On display are 40 selected photographs with a vivid record of a vibrant creative atmosphere, of the highly changed relationship between the artists and their political surroundings.

www.goethe.de/singapore

Venue: Goethe-Institut Singapore, 163 Penang Road, #05-01, Winsland House II
Time: 9 a.m. – 6 p.m. Mon - Sat
Ticket Prices: Free Admission
Presenter: Goethe-Institut Singapore

The humble recorder never looked – nor sounded – so different in the hands of four lissome virtuosos from Germany, who have taken it upon themselves to become ambassadors of the instrument. Winning accolades at major international chamber music competitions, Quartet New Generation, known better as QNG, has more recently captured rapturous fans throughout the US, including such prestigious venues as New York’s Carnegie Hall.

Offering an impressive repertoire ranging from Bach to Arvo Part to the important emerging composers of our time, QNG conjures up twittering birdsong, ghostly whispers and sublime animal cries from its battery of 30 instruments of varied shapes and sizes, some of which look more like architectural models than wooden end-blown flutes. In its Singaporean debut, the ensemble will enhance its international reputation for incredible dexterity and musical excellence, tackling repertoire ranging from Baroque to music of the 21st century.

www.singaporeartsfest.com

Venue: Jubilee Hall, Raffles Hotel, 1 Beach Road
Time: 8 p.m.
Ticket Prices: $55, $45, $35, $25
Ticket Bookings: SISTIC 6348 5555 or www.sistic.com.sg
Presenter: Singapore Arts Festival

For every question, there is an answer…
What is the power of water? How weak can it make you? Should we fear it, love it, hate it? A human being is made up of 80 percent water, so why do we need more? Why do tears taste salty? And why doesn’t sweat taste sweet?  Is Jaws still alive? And in how many ways can a man drown?

For all these questions, The Lunatics will try to find the answers - through a very intensive, hilarious, spectacular and even brutal search for the right value of water....

The award-winning Lunatics have been performing ingenious theatre in all kinds of places throughout the world - from marshlands to jungles, from bustling cities to barren deserts. With their brand of powerful poetic imagery often playing on the elements of air, fire, water, and earth, they now come to wreak havoc at our Bedok Reservoir with the world premiere of their latest water-fantasy Hydro Sapiens. Expect a splashing new spectacle!

www.singaporeartsfest.com

Venue: Bedok Reservoir (fronting Block 743), Bedok Reservoir Road
Time: 8 p.m.
Ticket Prices: Free admission
Presenter: Singapore Arts Festival

The London Sinfonietta has won an international reputation as one of the world’s most exciting contemporary music ensembles based on its virtuosic performances and adventurous programming. It is committed to placing new music at the heart of contemporary culture and pushing boundaries, regularly undertaking projects with choreographers, video artists, film-makers, and collaborations with electronica artists, jazz and folk musicians. It demonstrates these qualities perfectly in its two debut concerts at the Festival conducted by Diego Masson, French conductor who has worked with many major orchestras throughout the world such as all the BBC Orchestras, the Berlin Symphony Orchestra, and Stuttgart Chamber Orchestra.

www.singaporeartsfest.com

Traditional and contemporary, amateurs and professionals - musicians from diverse genres will convene at the Alliance Française de Singapour on Saturday 21 June 2008 to celebrate Fête de la Musique.

Fête de La Musique is celebrated in more than 250 towns over five continents. It traces its roots back to the tradition of the summer solstice, a pagan night recalling the ancient tradition of St. John’s feast. For the past ten years, Alliance Française de Singapour has joined cities like Paris, Barcelona, Budapest, Berlin, Brussels, Prague, Rome and Geneva in celebration of this festival.

www.alliancefrancaise.com

A major show at this year’s Month of Photography Asia (MOPAsia) is an exhibition of over 60 photographs by France’s leading contemporary photographer, filmmaker and writer, Alain Fleischer at the Singapore Art Museum.

The exhibition entitled Alain Fleischer: Time Exposures features his photography dealing with the theme of photography and cinema in which he explores the notions of time and movement in both art forms. An important feature of the exhibition is the work titled Ecran Sensible (Sensitive Screen), which was specially created in Singapore during a Master Class workshop with students from the School of Fine Arts at Lasalle College of the Arts. Ecran Sensible is a work which brings together analogue and digital photography and film technologies to produce a photographic print derived from moving images. Photographs in the exhibition span Alain Flesicher’s artistic career from the 1970s to the present.

www.singart.com

Venue: Singapore Art Museum, 71 Bras Basah Road
Time: 10 a.m. – 7 p.m. daily
Ticket Price: $8 (students & senior citizens concession apply)
Presenter: Singapore Art Museum, Phish Communications and the French Embassy

Exhibition Main Sponsor:

Co Presenter:

On June 21, 2008 Singapore Lyric Opera (SLO) will hold its inaugural  park performance - Opera in the Park – at  Symphony Lake at the  Singapore Botanic Gardens. The show will feature young talents as well as well-known names in the Singapore opera scene. Spectators can enjoy well-liked operatic tunes as well as popular songs from musicals amidst the lush green surroundings of Singapore Botanic Gardens.

www.singaporeopera.com.sg

As the French Ambassador of house music, Dimitri from Paris is everything his nation could be proud of: a DJ, producer, and remixer of the highest standard, and a stylish snake-hipped pin-up with French reserve. In a nutshell, there are two distinct sides to Dimitri: an undeniable dandy and, a devoted dance music fanatic.

His musical influences are deeply rooted in 70s Funk and Disco sounds that spawned today’s House music but also original soundtracks from 50’s and 60’s cult movies such as "Breakfast at Tiffany’s" and "The Party". Teaming these sounds with electro and block party hip-hop he discovered in the 80s, Dimitri remains of one of clublands most empathic DJs, selecting tracks that move your mind as well as your body.

So mark this date on your calendar and come party with a menagerie of party animals like no other with Monsieur Dimitri as the ringleader.

www.dimitrifromparis.com
myspace.com/djdimitrifromparis