Ordinary people who made S’pore great
NDP's first act showcased how citizens helped to build Singapore
Singaporeans of different backgrounds coming together.
That was the core message of the first act of yesterday's three-hour National Day Parade.
Titled Diversity, the section featured 800 performers who showcased how ordinary citizens from different eras in the country's history helped to make Singapore extraordinary.
Dancers entered the stage dressed as construction workers and samsui women who came to Singapore in its early years to build up the country. There were also dancers dressed as nurses, engineers, policemen, firefighters and traffic officers.
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Buildings wrapped in construction scaffolding rose around the performers before being unveiled as brand-new Housing Board flats.
Towards the end of the act, Singaporeans who had actually performed these small but important roles - bank tellers, nurses, engineers and more - joined the performers onstage.
They were separated into groups of five and each group carried a flag with the words - democracy, peace, progress, justice and equality - that the five stars on Singapore's flag represent.
One of the performers, 17-year-old Samson Solomon Sim, an Institute of Technical Education College Central student, performed a Malay dance, which he picked up as part of his co-curricular activities in school.
He said: "It really broadened my perspective... that was when my understanding of the Malay culture really expanded."
Although it is the floristry student's fifth year performing in the parade, Samson was still excited: "It is an honour (to be) performing in front of thousands and representing my school."- THE STRAITS TIMES
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