Dialects and dynasties—lately these are two aspects of Chinese culture and history that I find myself drawn to. The first has always brought a feeling of warmth and fondness, connecting me with my Hokkien roots. The second is something I have become interested in, through podcasts on the rich history of China’s dynasties.

Both have provided inspiration for the programming of Huayi – Chinese Festival of Arts, which will be held from 27 Feb – 8 Mar 2026. Audiences can expect legends told through different art forms at the 24th edition of the annual festival, which continues to feature the works of top-notch Chinese artists from around the world and Singapore.

Our opening show in the Esplanade Theatre, Deling and Cixi, marks the first time that one of the imperial courts of China—in this case the late Qing dynasty in all its tumult—will be brought to life at Huayi. The riveting portrayal of the likes of Empress Dowager Cixi, Emperor Guangxu and the western educated Princess Deling, living in a time when the seeds of change were blowing fervently through the country, was written by the much-feted Chinese playwright He Jiping. This version that we are presenting has toured widely across China to much acclaim since its premiere in 2019.

We are also presenting a living legend, the award-winning Taiwanese actor, King Shih-Chieh in Le Père (The Father). If you have witnessed his splendid performance in Tuesdays with Morrie on the Esplanade theatre stage in 2024, you will believe me when I say there will be no one in the audience who is not moved at the end of Le Père. Created and staged by the acclaimed Shanghai Dramatic Arts Centre, the show is an ingenious yet deeply affecting adaptation of French playwright Florian Zeller’s celebrated play about the physical and emotional world that people with dementia and their caregivers live in.

In addition, the festival will present a concert that looks at the many facets of Sun Wukong, the legendary great sage of heaven. We are stoked to work again with the Singapore Chinese Orchestra on Wukong’s 72 Transformation, which promises to be a feast of traditional Chinese music, multimedia projections, puppetry and storytelling.

Folk tales and legends of the region are often mined by artists to create new content for the stage. We are presenting two markedly different productions inspired by such tales. Sun Son Theatre from Taiwan is presenting A Little Goes A Long Way, a tale for the little ones and families, inspired by familiar folk tales that speak about resilience and grit, which are important traits for little ones to pick up.

For the first time in Huayi, we are co-commissioning a new work with the Taipei Performing Arts Centre entitled Tall Tales: Bananas and Ang Ku Kuehs. One look at this title and you know you will be in for an absurd and gratifying ride. Taking inspiration from folk tales in the region, this work is co-produced by The Finger Players of Singapore and Shakespeare’s Wild Sisters Group of Taiwan, and co-written and co-directed by Oliver Chong (Singapore) and Wang Chia-Ming (Taiwan).

Another first for Huayi is a science fiction story on stage. Originally written by Japanese playwright/director Tomohiro Maekawa, and now reinterpreted by award-winning Taiwanese theatre director Tora Hsu, The Sun is a gripping work set in a post-apocalyptic world fractured by bioterrorist attacks, which is so prescient for the times we live in.

Coming to Huayi for the first time is veteran Hong Kong choreographer and dancer Mui Cheuk Yin, who will be presenting a unique, tender yet moving dance work, Diary VII・The Story Of....... Based on her experiences rescuing stray cats in Hong Kong, the work ruminates on issues of home and diaspora.

We are pleased that the multi-talented Anna Lo and Rick Lau from Hong Kong will return to Huayi, having performed Tri Ka Tsai – A uniquely trilingual Hong Kong cabaret to sold-out crowds during the festival in 2023. I love to hear Chinese dialects being spoken in Singapore, and every time I hear someone speak Hokkien, it instantly brings to my mind an image of my smiling Ah Ma who only spoke Hokkien. And like many in my generation, my fondness for Cantonese came from being immersed in Hong Kong's television serials, movies and Cantopop while growing up. While the younger generations may not have many opportunities to learn to speak dialects these days, I do hope they will have fun at the second instalment of the three-part cabaret series, LauZone – A multilingual HK-style cabaret. This work is a musical love letter to the many languages and dialects spoken in Hong Kong and about finding one’s roots.

Returning to the festival too is The Freshman, Singapore’s beloved Mandopop duo who are celebrating 15 years of music, friendship and growth. We are grateful to have played a role in their development and it is our pleasure to work with them again to present a full concert by this effervescent and irrepressible duo. Other music acts we are presenting during the festival include the famed Chinese post-rock band, WANGWEN, along with two Taiwanese indie musicians, YELLOW and Crispy.

In addition to performances, the second edition of Huayi Dialogues is back, and we are looking forward to illuminating conversations with the featured artists.

Finally, Huayi  seeks to put the ‘festive’ in ‘festival’. We are grateful to our audiences who celebrate Chinese New Year with us at Huayi every year, and we would like to take this opportunity to wish everyone a bounteous year ahead.

Our heartfelt thanks also go to our Principal Sponsor Knife Cooking Oil and, Supporting Sponsors Berries 百力果 and Singapore China Baijiu, as well as Polar Premium Drinking Water for their support.

And since it’s the Year of the Horse, we wish that everyone who comes to Esplanade will immediately be blessed with good luck and health, and prosperity!（“艺”马当先，万马奔腾！） May you also find no shortage of connections with history, heritage and all manner of legends in the process.

Delvin Lee 
Senior Producer, The Esplanade Co Ltd
Huayi – Chinese Festival of Arts 

Launched in 2003 during the Chinese New Year, Huayi – Chinese Festival of Arts was introduced as one of three annual cultural festivals at Esplanade – Theatres on the Bay celebrating Singapore’s multicultural heritage.

We aspire to make Huayi the pinnacle festival for Chinese artists, and to be internationally recognised for it. Through commissions, co-productions, presentations and showcases, Huayi enables audiences to experience some of the most dynamic forms of artistic expression by Chinese artists.

Huayi introduces our audiences to works that reveal the unique individual voices of Chinese artists, and as a multi-genre arts festival, the works curated for each Huayi range across a wide spectrum, from the traditional to the contemporary, the mainstream to the cutting-edge.

We are committed to promote and preserve the beauty of the Chinese language and culture, expressed through the performing arts, as a way for Singaporean Chinese to connect with their roots.

Huayi is dedicated to working with Singapore artists and making them known to an international audience as well, by fostering collaborations or partnerships with arts centres and arts festivals.

Over the years, we are humbled and yet also heartened that Huayi has grown into one of the most warmly embraced arts festivals in Singapore, and a sought-after platform for Chinese artists all over the world.

And as it takes place during the Chinese New Year, we celebrate the occasion with an inspiring and exciting line-up of arts programmes, both paid and free. We invite people from all walks of life to come enjoy and participate in our programmes, and we hope that they will encounter much inspiration and positivity so as to start the year on a cheery note.

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