This year, Singapore Night Festival 2026, the 17th edition of Singapore’s largest nocturnal experience in Bras Basah.Bugis, will uncover the stories of myths and legends associated with Singapore and the wider Southeast Asian region.
Singapore Night Festival 2026: 21 Aug to 5 Sep
Singapore Night Festival 2026 will take place across three weekends from 21 August to 5 September 2026. This year’s nocturnal festival in the Bras Basah.Bugis precinct will take place across four festival hubs:
- Museum Zone: Centred around the National Museum of Singapore, the Children’s Museum Singapore and surrounding heritage spaces, the hub will bring the theme to life through experiences and programmes inspired by the precinct’s heritage.
- Zone 1: Stretching from Funan to CHIJMES, this zone invites visitors to discover unique experiences ranging from a creative craft market at Capitol Singapore to interactive programmes and installations within the historic grounds of CHIJMES.
- Zone 2: Spanning Cathay Green to Waterloo Centre, this zone celebrates the creativity and vibrancy of the precinct’s arts groups and educational institutions through performances, exhibitions and participatory experiences.
- Zone 3: Anchored by partners at Bras Basah Complex and Stamford Arts Centre, this zone showcases a diverse range of cultural experiences, from xinyao performances and traditional arts to community-led activations celebrating Singapore’s living heritage.
Three Signature Festival Highlights
Festival-goers can look forward to three signature festival highlights that take inspiration from the myths, legends and stories around us.
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These are:
- Tales of Earth and Sea
- The Lost Legacy of Fort Canning: The Forbidden Hill
- MALAM Projection Mapping Competition.
Tales of Earth and Sea
Tales of Earth and Sea is a striking projection on the facade of the National Museum of Singapore.
The work of Indonesian multimedia artist team based in Bandung, Indonesia The Fox, The Folks, it reinterprets local folklore, set to an original cross-border soundtrack by Singapore’s multi-ethnic music collective Artusik and UiTM Malaysia.
Sharing the spotlight for the festival’s opening week is the Southeast Asian debut of Birdmen by the renowned Dutch group Close-Act Theatre.
Audiences can get up close with these mysterious, luminous stilt walkers dressed as fantastical, pterodactyl-like creatures as they roam alongside the stunning visuals, creating an unforgettable, multi-sensory experience.
This projection mapping display will take place on Fridays and Saturdays, 7.30 pm to 12 midnight and Sunday to Thursday, 7.30 pm to 11 pm.
The Lost Legacy of Fort Canning: The Forbidden Hill
The Lost Legacy of Fort Canning: The Forbidden Hill is a 70-minute nocturnal walking trail through Fort Canning Park that uncovers the ancient secrets and myths of Bukit Larangan.
Explore the shadowed, historical secrets of Bukit Larangan, the Forbidden Hill, on an immersive 70-minute nocturnal walking trail where archaeological history, ancient myth, and deep mystery converge within Fort Canning Park.
This multi-disciplinary programme transports participants directly into the 14th-century world of early Singapura through a compelling combination of atmospheric soundscapes and live traditional Malay dance and physical movement. The outdoor journey charts the dramatic rise and fall of an ancient kingdom, mapping tales of buried gold, the historic freshwater spring that sustained early riverine settlements, and the enigmatic sacred shrine whose true identity remains unconfirmed.
This is a ticketed programme that will take place on 21 and 22 Aug, 27, 28 and 29 Aug, 3, 4 and 5 Sep 2026. There will be session at 8 pm to 9.10 pm and 10 pm – 11.10 pm (on weekends only).
Tickets are priced at $60.
MALAM Projection Mapping Competition
This year’s festival will also see the inaugural MALAM Projection Mapping Competition.
This competition provides a platform for emerging Southeast Asian artists, students and collectives to showcase their work and received close to 50 submissions from artists and collectives across Southeast Asia.
Festivalgoers can enjoy a mesmerising display of the top 20 entries on the façade of The Cathay during the first week of Singapore Night Festival 2026.
The top five submissions will be selected and remain as staple projections on The Cathay throughout the festival.
View these projections from 21 August to 5 September 2026, on Friday & Saturday, 7.30 pm to 12 midnight and Sunday to Thursday, 7.30 pm to 11 pm.
Lights and Installations to See at Singapore Night Festival 2026
Various landmarks and historical spaces will be cast in new light during the Singapore Night Festival 2026.
At the Armenian Street Lawn, local creative studio TELL YOUR CHILDREN presents a nautical installation titled Vikings of the Tropics, the work brings attention to the sea trade history of Bugis and Buginese maritime traders who used Singapore as a port hub.
At the Capitol Singapore Outdoor Plaza, visitors can encounter Once Upon A Time, a community installation co-created by weaver and upcycling artist Natalia Tan alongside students from local schools, supported by Official Sustainability Partner Cora Environment and Official Partner Perennial Holdings.
The Once Upon A Time installation features 30 unique animal sculptures meticulously crafted from textile waste, retired uniforms, and everyday discarded fabrics and draws inspiration from traditional regional folktales such as Sang Kancil and Sang Buaya and the historic William Farquhar Collection of Natural History Drawings.
The sculptures form a dramatic 3D hourglass shape suspended from an overhead truss to symbolise the urgent timing of biodiversity conservation. The installation also invites hands-on public participation, allowing visitors to add their own stitches, paillettes, and buttons to the ground-based artworks in a collective expression of ecological care.
At the Singapore Management University Campus Green, there will be works like The Dragon’s Tooth: A Legend of Becoming Light by Starlight Alchemy, which combines bamboo structures, refracted light, participatory elements and performance to reimagine monuments as sites of remembrance.
Another is You and I, Believing… by the Yellow Ribbon Community Arts Festival Committee 2026, a site-specific installation inspired by the Bras Basah convict jail in the 19th century.
Audiences can also discover THE BLOOMING HEARTS FORTUNE MERLION at Plaza Singapura, presented by UNIPLAY. The work raises awareness about plastic recycling while debunking common myths about recycling practices through a vibrant sculpture inspired by the Merlion, made from fiberglass and recycled plastic bottle flakes.
Inaugural Light Together Bras Basah.Bugis
Beyond the festival’s spectacular night lights, projection mappings, programmes and workshops, festivalgoers can also look forward to four more installations, presented as part of the inaugural edition of Light Together Bras Basah.Bugis.
Also guided by the theme Myths and Legends, Light Together Bras Basah.Bugis 2026 shines a light on colloquial myths and superstitions, creating tongue-in-cheek artworks that resonate with local communities.
Singapore Night Festival 2026
When: 21 August to 5 September 2026
Where: Bras Basah.Bugis
Get the full details about Singapore Night Festival 2026 here with more programme and artwork details will be progressively rolled out from 3 August.
