Wan Qing Mid-Autumn Festival 2018 Celebrates Chinese Culture & Arts

Falling on the 15th day of the eighth lunar month, the Mid-Autumn Festival (also known widely as Mooncake Festival) is one of the most important festivals for Chinese communities around the world. A part of Singapore’s intangible cultural heritage, festive practices associated with the Mid-Autumn Festival include mooncake tasting, lighting outdoors lantern and appreciating the full moon. Organised by Sun Yat Sen Nanyang Memorial Hall, Wan Qing Mid-Autumn Festival is an annual Chinese cultural festival which invites the community to reflect on our shared heritage and come together in celebration of Chinese arts and culture.

This year’s festival presents an exciting weekend of offerings suitable for the young and the young at heart, including heritage trails, mooncake tasting, lantern-making workshops, the storytelling of Mid-Autumn tales, performances ranging from the traditional to the contemporary, and more. Join them at Wan Qing Mid-Autumn Festival on 22 and 23 September 2018 to learn more about the history and cultural significance of this widely celebrated festival!

The Memorial Hall’s thematic lantern installation also promises to make for great photo- moments under the stars. Featuring lanterns from across Southeast Asia, the festive installation celebrates Singapore’s chairmanship of ASEAN this year. The lantern installation will be on display from 1 September to 8 October 2018. 

Wan Qing Mid-Autumn Festival 2018 – Cultural Activities

1. Unveiling Singapore’s Largest Mooncake (Supported by Kwong Cheong Thye)

• Date: 22 September
• Time: 6.00pm – 7.00pm
• Admission: No registration required. Available on a first come, first served basis.

 Be a part of history in the making, as the Memorial Hall attempts to set a new record for the Largest Mooncake in Singapore! Join our partners and visitors in commemorating this historical moment as the Memorial Hall unveils Singapore’s first giant mooncake measuring a whopping 1.8 metres in diameter. Be sure to snap a photo with the record-breaking mooncake, and savour a piece of it! The giant mooncake is Halal-certified.

2. Fun with Lantern Riddles

• Date: 22 & 23 September
• Time: 10.00am – 8.00pm
• Admission: No registration required

Have fun guessing the riddles in this traditional game. Collect your activity passport at our Reception Desk and get a stamp when you get five answers correct, and stand a chance to win a mystery prize!

3. Snowskin Mooncake Workshop

• Date: 22 & 23 September
• Time: 11.00am – 12.00pm
• Admission: $10.00/pair. Register at peatix.com/user/1035460

Mid-Autumn Festival won’t be complete without mooncakes, which are Chinese pastries traditionally filled with a sweet lotus paste. Learn how to make this delicious festive delicacy and bring home some tasty treats for your family.

4. Tea Appreciation Workshop  (Supported by Pek Sin Choon Pte Ltd & Nanyang Tea Society)

• Date: 22 & 23 September
• Time: 3.30pm – 5.00pm
• Admission: No registration required. Available on a first come, first served basis.

Enjoy aromatic Chinese tea and learn more about the delicate art of tea brewing and appreciation in this free workshop!

5. Mooncake & Tea Tasting (Supported by Kwong Cheong Thye & Pek Sin Choon Pte Ltd)

• Date: 22 & 23 September
• Time: 11.00am – 8.00pm
• Admission: No registration required. Available on a first come, first served basis.

Savour a taste of tradition and sample our range of yummy mooncakes and aromatic Nanyang tea. Enjoy these festive delicacies as you learn more about Mid-Autumn Festival!

6. Miniature Lantern-making

• Date: 22 & 23 September
• Time: 11.00am – 8.00pm
• Admission: No registration required

Try your hand at this simple paper lantern craft activity, and bring home a Mid-Autumn souvenir. Collect your activity passport at our Reception Desk and get a stamp when you visit our booth, and stand a chance to win a free mystery prize!

7. Bookmark Calligraphy

• Date: 22 & 23 September
• Time: 11.00am – 8.00pm
• Admission: No registration required

Fancy a personalised bookmark with Mid-Autumn themed sayings, or even your name on it? Collect your activity passport at our Reception Desk and get a stamp when you visit our booth, and stand a chance to win a mystery prize!

8. Mid-Autumn Tales (Supported by the Speak Good English Movement and Speak Mandarin Campaign)

• Date: 22 September
• Time: 12.00pm – 1.00pm (Chi); 5.00pm – 6.00pm (Eng)
• Date: 23 September
• Time: 12.00pm – 1.00pm (Eng); 5.00pm – 6.00pm (Chi)
• Admission: No registration required

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! Each session will feature a different story and craft activity.

9. Evening Concert

• Date: 22 & 23 September
• Time: 7.30pm – 9.30pm
• Admission: No registration required

Experience wonder and delight in this dynamic showcase of cultural and contemporary arts! Grab a hammock or picnic mat, and enjoy a range of performances under the stars. Performances include dragon dance, kungfu tea, traditional lantern dance, quick-change, live music, drama production on the legend of Chang’E, and more!

Wan Qing Mid-Autumn Festival 2018 – Craft Activities

10. Jade Rabbit Lantern Workshop

• Date: 22 September
• Time: 1.30pm – 2.30pm
• Admission: $10.00/pair. Register at peatix.com/user/1035460

Complete your Mid-Autumn experience and have fun creating your very own Jade Rabbit Lantern! Express your creativity in this traditional craft session and bring your lantern to life.

11. Moon-gazing Binoculars Workshop

• Date: 23 September
• Time: 1.30pm – 2.30pm
• Admission: $10.00/pair. Register at peatix.com/user/1035460

Get crafty and try your hand at making a pair of unique moon-gazing binoculars to admire the beauty of the full moon this Mid-Autumn Festival. If you look hard enough, you might see the moon goddess Chang’E and her loyal companion, the Jade Rabbit!

12. Make Your Own Shrink Art

• Date: 22 September
• Time: 2.00pm – 5.00pm
• Admission: No registration required

Have some fun at our drop-in sand shrink art workshop, and create colourful masterpieces using our adorable templates!

13. Make Your Own Sun-catcher

• Date: 23 September
• Time: 2.00pm – 5.00pm
• Admission: No registration required

Design your very own sun-catcher, adorned with stencils of mooncakes, lanterns, and the Jade Rabbit. Hold your final masterpiece up against the sun, and be amazed by the kaleidoscope of colours that shine through!

14. Face Painting

• Date: 22 & 23 September
• Time: 11.00am – 8.00pm
• Admission: No registration required

Transform yourself into a delicate flower, fearsome tiger, or adorable bunny at the stroke of a brush. Collect your activity passport at our Reception Desk and get a stamp when you visit our booth, and stand a chance to win a mystery prize!

Wan Qing Mid-Autumn Festival 2018 – Heritage Tours & Trails

15. Balestier Heritage & Food Trail

• Date: 22 & 23 September
• Time: 10.30am – 12.00pm
• Admission: $5.00 (includes bottled water and a traditional snack). Register at peatix.com/user/1035460. Available in English or Mandarin.

Embark on the Balestier Heritage & Food Trail to uncover the history of the precinct, while exploring heritage sites and sampling delicious local delights along the way!

16. Permanent Galleries Guided Tour

• Date: 22 & 23 September
• Time: 2.30pm – 3.30pm (Chi); 3.00pm – 4.00pm (Eng)
• Admission: No registration required

Take a tour of the Memorial Hall’s permanent galleries and learn more about Dr Sun Yat Sen and Singapore’s role in the 1911 Revolution.