MULTIMEDIA TO ENHANCE NDP SHOW

The National Day Parade (NDP) has always been known for its entertaining displays and colourful performances. To enhance the spectator's visual experience, this year's NDP stage will feature three tiers of performance areas and include dazzling multimedia effects made possible with High Definition projectors and digital LED screens.

In addition, the stage has been extended up to 8m closer to the stands to allow the audience to further immerse themselves in the performances.

Commenting on the transformation of the stage, Chairman of the Communications and Multimedia Committee Lieutenant Colonel (LTC) Edward Chen said: "This year, we aim to create a completely different world for our audience on the floating platform, as we augment the show segments and make the stage come alive through the use of multimedia."

This year, the floor projection on the platform covers about 60 percent of the entire stage, the largest in NDP's history.

Explaining the concept behind the projection which is 25 percent larger than the previous year's, LTC Chen said: "This allows us to use the floor animations to transform the outlook of the whole stage to support the performance."

For instance, during the Represent segment of the NDP show, the floor animation will project the images of a basketball court and a football field as the different athletes come on stage to show off their skills.

Apart from the floor projection, another multimedia element is the five LED screens (one centre and four side screens) that will form the stage backdrop.

Highlights that will be played on the five LED screens include a light-hearted 3D animation of the Merlion coming to life and crossing the waters to join in the NDP celebrations, as well as a supporting animation for the extreme sportsmen performing in the Reinvent segment.

Ms Shirlene Loo, a Motion Graphics Designer from Nanyang Polytechnic involved in the production of the Reinvent video, said: "It is to highlight the youth being more spontaneous and being able to push themselves beyond boundaries... It gives a very energetic feeling to the performance."

Multimedia aside, the main performing space on the stage is about 4,600sqm and includes three performing tiers at different heights.

Between the Tier 1 and Tier 2 platforms, there is a 6m-high flight of stairs known as the Grand Stairs, where participants from the Singapore Soka Association will form the human LED screen during the Play segment.

Explaining the concept behind this year's stage, Chairman of the Infrastructure and Decoration Committee Military Expert 7 (ME7) Chow Wai Yein said: "The three-tier design allows the performers to creatively use the different spaces to showcase their talents.

"Also, with 18 different access points, it allows the parade participants and show performers to come in quickly and seamlessly."

Speaking about the challenges faced during the construction, ME7 Chow said: "The timeline and schedule are indeed very challenging, so we work very closely with our partners to ensure that the stage is delivered on time so that the rehearsals can proceed on time, and to be able to bring the best show on 9 Aug."

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