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When I went to Seoul, I purposely booked tickets to watch Nanta. It was an awesome experience to watch the show from its originating place. When I went to Japan last year, I was hope to put Drum Tao as a must watch but time wasn’t on my side and I didn’t manage to watch it unfortunately. I knew I had to watch it without me having to make another trip to Japan.

You must be wondering how can a taiko/wadaiko drumming show last over 2 hour to entertain the audience. It’s not just non- stop drumming solely, there are a variety of drums and musical instruments and even martial arts performance. It’s really very interesting such instrument dating centuries back can remain relevant and popular. Drum Tao did just that – making taiko/wadaiko drumming contemporary and relevant to be enjoy by the current generation including families and kids.

I brought 3 of my kids, especially for small J who has expressed interest in learning percussion drums. They have yet to attend such full length performance art hence I had some hesitation but my fears were unfounded. Even my 3.5 year old was  entertained from start to finish in the 2 hour long show with intermission .

The show started with a bang with an energetic number with the performers moving around on hover board. Thereafter, there were soothing and slow flute performances to bring down our heartbeats. It may not be a memorable one but its vital to keep the high and low of the show by picking up tempo thereafter . There were martial arts, somersaults, acrobatic acts and even comedy peppered throughout the performance. You have to watch it yourself to see why Drum Tao has been watched by more than 8 million people all around the word.

At times, I was transported to Japan with old edo period and sakura as the background to some of the acts making me want to visit Japan again.

There are no dialogues but an aural experience of lights and music. A total salute to all the super fit and talented performers who played different instrument, danced, performed and the stamina of non stop drumming

Of course, the most awe-inspiring performance of them all was when all the performers crossed over to each other drums in perfect precision.

These are some of the acts taken during the encore performance.

There are only 3 shows left this weekend, and if you are a lover of all things Japanese this is for you, if you are a music and performance arts lover  this for you too (in fact I bumped into my kids performance art teachers there perhaps finding inspiration for the year end performance) . And if your kids who are fans of drums in particular , I don’t think there is a similar music extravagant like this.

DRUM TAO

Showtimes:
Friday: 8pm
Saturday: 3pm & 8pm
Sunday: 3pm

MES Theatre at Mediacorp
1 Stars Avenue, Singapore 138507

Ticket Prices (exclude booking fee)
Standard: $138, $118, $98, $78

Online Booking: www.sistic.com.sg
Tickets also available through 6348 5555 and all SISTIC channels

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I was invited to the media preview and learned some interesting facts about this award winning musical. 

1. The show was first debuted in November 2010 by the Royal Shakespeare Company and has been seen by more than 8 million people
2. This is the first Asia debut, so thankful Singapore was picked to stage this award winning musical
3. At the onset, Matilda was meant to be played by an adult but using a young talent instead has made the musical more magical and relatable, making Matilda Wormwood the smallest leading lady in a musical
4. The swings in swing scene required a few years of engineering to perfect the scene and the outcome, you have to see it to be mesmerised
5. Ms Trunchbull’s character is played by a man in the musical purely for the reason to create a big difference between the height of Matilda/kids/Ms Honey with Ms Trunchbull
6. Quentin Blake, who is the illustrator of Roald Dahl’s books designed the Crunchem Hall School badge features on the children’s blazer and on Ms Trunchbull’s chair

We were privilege to do a back stage tour with the stage manager. We saw props, wardrobe, costumes, and the back stage. Here is a quick pictorial tour of the backstage which makes all the magic happens on stage.

For my review, see my post here.

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How fortunate are the kids in Singapore! After last year’s all time favourite musical The Lion King , we are blessed again with another Broadway hit Matilda the Musical without needing to fly to London or New York.

It is the very first time in Singapore and even Asia, and for Roald Dahl fans, you don’t want to miss the opportunity to see one of your favourite books come to live in an award winning musical.

I actually watched the movie out from Netflix as I just couldn’t wait to catch the show and I must say the movie was actually very good after reading the book recently. Watching a live musical is an entirely different level. Albeit the pricey ticket prices especially if you have multiple kids, I am still one for the musicals. All good musicals are worth every penny and they don’t come by to our sunny shore that often. (The Lion King took 7 years become they came back). The musical does not follow the story line strictly, hence for those who has read the book or watch the movie, there are still surprises in store for you!

For some interesting facts about the musical and a pictorial backstage tour, see this post.

5 reasons why you should bring your family to catch Matilda the Musical

1. Strong messages and values behind the story

Throughout the musical very strong messages come across to the audience through the lyrics of the musical

-when life’s not fair you doesn’t mean that you have to grin and bear with it

-and if its not right, you got to put it right

Simple yet powerful and kids are able to relate to these messages.

Matilda has used her voice, her intelligence and her courage to fight those who try to intimidate her – her parents and Ms Trunchbull. Yet she is overcame them by being even stronger in mind. She fights for her rights and of those of her friends and Ms Honey despite being faced by a larger than life character in the form of her school headmistress, Ms Trunchbull.

2. The music has left a strong impression in the audience despite not being as recognisable as some other more popular musicals

The music may not be as recognisable as The Phantom of the Opera or The Lion King but the tunes are so catchy and the kids can relate to the lyrics to them easily. Even as I am hearing for the first time, I can definitely huming the tune of When I grow up and Revolting children after the show! Now it is in my spotify playlist. There were 3 SPECTACULAR acts in the musical which are magnificiently choreographed, totally world class! (won’t elaborate too much so as to not to create a spoiler) . If I need to pay to watch the 3 spectacular scenes which were the one at the Crunchem Hall gate, the swing scene and the revolting children in the classroom again, I would!

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3. A strong and intelligent female protagonist rarely seen in musical

The musical feature a strong and intelligent female protagonist (fun fact: the shortest female lead in West End ). It is not very common to see such a strong and pint-sized female lead. With the small size played by young talent instead of an adult renders the musical a bit more magic. Messages that you’re never too small to stand up to bullies, there is magic inside all of us if we focus really, really hard, and that books are the most beautiful kind of love are seen throughout the show.

The only thing I must pre-warned you, the reason why my two younger kids did not follow along was they were very scared of Ms Trunchbull character in the movie (easily one of Roald Dahl’s scariest villains). That said, I must say she is less scary in the musical, in fact she is verging on being comical at times and it is big J’s favourite character. My older two kids absolute love the story through and through. So I would say that is good from 6-ish year old onwards especially if they have been introduced to this very beautiful story from the master storyteller as they will be able to enjoy the story more. The entire musical last for 2.5 hours including a 15 minutes interval.

4. You dont have to travel abroad to catch the award winning production

I have seen friends bringing kids to UK to catch Matilda the Musical but we are a lucky bunch thanks to Base Entertainment to bring the show to Asia for the first time and in particular Singapore.
As I sat there at the Sands Theatre catching the musical, I am thankful I call Singapore my home, for having such beautiful venue to stage world class performances and for companies like Base Entertainment Asia which believe this musical will be well received in Singapore. In words of the CEO of Base Entertainment Chantal Prudhomme, she had watched it more than 5 times abroad and loved it every time she watched, and yes we loved it very much too and we got to watch this without having to travel abroad.

5. It’s like how deep an impression Sound of Music left in my childhood,  this musical has done the same to my kids 

I think its the stories/musicals involving children are those that kids can relate and remember most in their childhood. I watched Sound of Music uncountable times during my childhood and remembered the show fondly. I believe Matilda the Musical has left a very deep impression in my kids’ childhood memories with the strong messages that is being sung throughout the show.

Do come slightly earlier as there are lots of photo ops around the theatre where you can do the Matilda pose and with the alphabet blocks seen throughout the show.

Matilda The Musical
Venue: Sands Theatre @ Marina Bay Sands
From: 21 February 2019 to 17 March 2019
Showtimes: Tue – Fri: 7.30pm | Sat: 2pm & 7.30pm | Sun: 1pm & 6pm
Prices: Tue – Thur: $68 – $178 | Fri – Sun: $68 – $198 (excluding $4 ticketing fee)

For booking, click here.

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Even since Tayo Station opened last year, I have been wanting to bring my 4 kids down to check it out as my kids are huge Pororo fans. I always think that the distance is a hindrance to me. In fact, the number of times we actually went all the way to Downtown East is less than 5 times in the 10 years I have kids – twice for shows and once for an event (and we even stay in North East not even at the far west).

Since we are going to do a staycation at D’Resort at Downtown East which is located next to E Hub where Tayo Station is located , it’s finally time to include Tayo Station as the first item in the our itinerary especially it was so hot and humid when we checked in. On hindsight, after an awesome weekend staycation, frankly Downtown East is not so far – half hour from home but endless hours of fun, it’s not even crossing the border and praying there is no jam at the custom.

Tayo Station is themed around the South Korean animated series (Tayo The Little Bus) that follows Tayo and his little bus friends who often discover new sights and go on exciting adventures every day in the big city. Tayo Station spans a massive 10,000-square-feet-space that integrates indoor playground attractions, edutainment area and sensory play space for young children from 1 to 12 years old. 

The highlight and uniqueness of Tayo Station on top of being a themed play gym was the very good size road circuit. My kids are big fan of the Road Safety Park at ECP as they can indulge in pretend play. This is the same but in air-conditioned comfort. Complete with a “big garage” of “cars” – Tayo Bus ride-ons (below 3) and also wiggle cars (older kids and even for adults below 80kg). It is a very good size two lanes circuits complete with lots of pretend play areas – workshop, car wash, petrol station.

In fact the kids spend the most time, even the going to be 10 year old had so much fun playing the circuit with his siblings. Even I had a go at the wiggle car as it was not crowded on a Friday evening. Typically on peak/busy period only parents for younger kids are allowed into the road circuits to supervise the kids.

The kids had so much fun indulging in pretend play like adults driving cars on the road, going to the workshop, car wash or even pumping petrol. There is also a zebra crossing area complete with a working traffic light! And there were also playing police chasing thief etc. Thankfully, its not crowded on Friday afternoon hence they played to their hearts’ content.

Hinoki bead area – another area where the kids had fun being snow angels, pretending to be at the beach, perfect for younger kids’sensorial needs.

As in all gym, it is not complete without a ballpit or a play gym structure named after Gani. There is a toddler area with soft blocks and slides.

There is also an area for fans for Tayo to watch the show and rest.

And a good size snack area complete with vending machines which are stocked with hot drinks, snacks and ice creams.

For parents who wish to organise birthday parties, there are two parties rooms to choose from and two affordable packages to choose from. For add-ons, see more details here.

Admission prices are as follows:

Lastly, there is also a themed gift shop complete with Tayo toys and even Pororo toys at the entrance for all the Tayo and Pororo fans.

Tayo Station has been designed for kids below 12 years old. I thought it may too kiddish for my soon to be 10-year old but my worry was unfounded. In fact, as there was no crowd on a Friday afternoon, I myself tried the wiggle car and had great fun with the kids at the road circuits. (Parents are normally allowed for kids below 5). Of course the younger ones had the most fun as I lost them the minutes they took off their shoes. In fact, throughout our staycation , the kids had been incessantly asking to go back however we were so packed with activities hence it calls for a visit in due course. In fact, Tayo Station has lined up many activities for the March school holidays, do check out their website and social media for their upcoming activities.

So for fans for Tayo the little bus or kids who loved road circuits, (I don’t think there is any playgym in Singapore that boast such a nice and big road circuit, Tayo Station is really worth checking out even if you have to drive all the way from the west to check this out!

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Tayo Station has kindly sponsored 2 sets of membership (worth $56 each) Each membership (inclusive of first free child admission + 1 adult) is worth $50 and including 1 science week activity – worth $6 .

1. Like and follow mypreciouzkids and Tayo Station on Facebook

2. Like and follow mypreciouzkids and Tayo Station on Instagram

3. Tag to as many friends on this IG post (one tag per comment)

4. Bonus for 5 additional chances, repost this IG post with tag #mypreciouzkidsgiveaway

Giveaway ends 10th March 2019 Sunday 2359.

Winners: @eileent @aarti.gargagarwal.7

Disclaimer: This is a sponsored post.  No monetary compensation was received. All opinions are my own. 

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Taiko drumming is a Japanese culture that dates back to many centuries ago. How often do we have a cultural performance being improvised for modern society entertainment and embraced by the current generation to huge popularity. We didn’t managed to witness first hand during our trip to Japan last year, so we are extremely fortunate to be able to catch Drum Tao in Singapore and only for 4 shows!

World renowned Japanese martial arts and drum extraordinaire, Drum Tao, will be back for a spectacular brand new production early next month. Fans can look forward to a whole new experience in Drum Tao – Rhythm of Tribe which aims to deliver a blockbuster grandeur in this latest production. With Japanese drums as the center of attraction and spellbinding projections, Drum Tao will bring you on a time-travel journey to a new dimension with the samurai beyond time and space in search of old Japanese virtues. Whether you are a fan of drumming or not, you will definitely enjoy the exhilarating and entertaining performance put up by Japan’s Number 1 Sensation!

Seen by more than 8 million spectators over 26 countries and 500 cities, Drum Tao has wowed the audience with their innovative and exhilarating Taiko drumming performances, since its debut in 2004 at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival.
In 2016, their first appearance on Stephen Colbert Show had a huge impact on American people and their first Off-Broadway shows resulted in great success.
Newsweek says “the highly acclaimed debut of DRUM TAO Off-Broadway represents not only Japanese entertainment but Japan itself.”
In 2018, DRUM TAO has 241 night-time performances, called “Mangekyo” in Tokyo for tourists from around the world and is supposed to have a year-round show in Tokyo from 2019 through 2021.
For this achievement, DRUM TAO has been the recipient of The 6th Annual
Commissioner Award from the Japanese Tourism Agency, as well as being named “Outstanding Cultural Contribution” from Oita Prefecture and Minister of International Affairs and Communications Award. TAO rewrites the history of traditional Japanese drumming, and yet proudly remains the greatest Drum Performers in Japan.

https://www.youtube.com/embed/T352Y6hzbZg

Drum Tao – Rhythm of Tribe (1- 3 March 2019)

Showtimes:
Friday: 8pm
Saturday: 3pm & 8pm
Sunday: 3pm

MES Theatre at Mediacorp
1 Stars Avenue, Singapore 138507

Ticket Prices (exclude booking fee)
Standard: $138, $118, $98, $78

Online Booking: www.sistic.com.sg
Tickets also available through 6348 5555 and all SISTIC channels

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I can’t contain my excitement that me and my 3 kids will be meeting Julia Donaldson herself  in person in when Kidsfest 2017 opens in January 2017.   I grew up reading Enid Blyton’s book and the LM Montgomery’s Anne of Green Gables series but my kids grew up reading Julia Donaldson’s books. I do not have a slightest clue of Julia Donaldson or her books until I had kids. The first ever Julia’s Donaldson book we owned was The Gruffalo. It is amazing how such an ugly looking creature is so well loved by my kids and also the kids all over the world. And the illustration by Axel Scheffler is amazing (one of the most awesome pairing in the current children’s literary world).

J has gone on another range of Julia Donaldson’s book -fiction series while C is starting with the early readers series. Julia Donaldson is so versatile, that she is not just doing picture books but the kids growing up with her picture books will go on reading more advance series.

We have been to shows at Kidsfest watching predominantly Julia Donaldson’s stories – The Gruffalo, The Gruffalo’s child, Room on the Broom and many more but Kidsfest 2017 will be extra special and memorable as we will be meeting the author herself.

Having ignited the imagination of young children worldwide, Julia with a background in song-writing and performance graces the stage to perform at a brand-new show, Gruffalos, Ladybirds and Other Beasts. The show will feature some of the most iconic characters from five of her best-selling books – The Gruffalo; What the Ladybird Heard; Zog; A Squash and a Squeeze; Jack and the Flumflum Tree.

The five members strong cast which include Julia herself, her husband and her sister, they will sing-along and incorporate snippets from the 5 stories and there will also be plenty of audience participation. The kids will get to meet all the different characters from the 5 stories all in 1 show!

 

After the hour-long show , the audience can look forward to meeting Julia in person at the book-signing session.

I will have each kid bring a different Julia Donaldson’s book for the book signing session. I am sure J will be inspired to meet the author herself having read many of her books. How often do we get to meet an award winning author!

In addition to the brand-new Gruffalos, Ladybirds and Other Beasts,  three other classics by Julia Donaldson – Gruffalos, The Snail and the Whale and The Stickman will also be part of the Kidsfest 2017’s lineup.

Victoria Theatre
Thu, 19 – Sun, 22 Jan 2017 (only 8 performances)

• Thu: 3pm, 6pm
• Fri: 3pm, 6pm
• Sat: 11am, 4pm
• Sun: 11am, 4pm

Tickets are now available at any SISTIC outlet, the official SISTIC website at, or at the hotline 6348 5555. Prices range from $42 to $62.

I did a search on youtube and I found one of her performances last year which featured Room on the Broom. If you have to pick just 1 show from the 9 world class productions for Kidsfest 2017, I highly recommend Gruffalos, Ladybirds and Other Beasts with Julia Donaldson. We do not get to meet author of books we grow up with everyday. I am sure my kids will remember meeting her till they have kids of their own.

For the rest of the lineup of Kidsfest 2017 , do click on this link for the complete schedule.

Disclaimer: This is a sponsored post. All photos except the photo of my kids and the story book are credited to ABA productions. 
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I may sound like a broken record but if you have read my reviews of previous Singapore Repertory Theatre/The Little Company productions,  you will know that the show that make me fall madly deeply in love with SRT/TLC is the Mandarin production of The Three Little Pigs , I was so mesmerised by the charisma of the big bad wolf that I have new admiration for kids productions etc. Since there, I am have been a firm supporter of SRT/TLC productions hence my kids get to watch most if not all of them!

And finally after waiting for more than 3 years, The Three Little Pigs is back but now interpreted in English. I am sure the songs will the same catchy tunes as the ones in Mandarin but I can’t wait to meet the big bad wolf. I  really hope they cast a very strong actor to play that role.

Based on the sold-out performances previously, I am very sure this will be another home run. Please do not wait any longer and book your tickets now. I know my kids cant wait to meet Char, Siu and Bao!

This musical is recommended for children aged 3 and above. The Three Little Pigs teaches little ones how success can be achieved through hard work and perseverance. Filled with humour, this endearing tale will leave you squealing with glee and howling with laughter!

While waiting for August to come, get your kids familiarise with the songs if they don’t already know them by heart for them to sing-a-long. P/S for kids turning 3 and going to be introduced to the wonderful world of live children productions, this is one of the best shows to start with as the story line is simple (maybe to some the big bad wolf maybe a tad scary but he is so funny too) Small J, turned 3 recently is a veteran though as he gets to tag along his older siblings since the age of 1.5 years old but having seen the posters and print ads he has been asking me where are the three little pigs (when I watched the Mandarin version, he was not even born yet!).

DATES: From 4th August 2016 Monday to Friday 10am; Saturdays 11am and 2pm
PRICES: From $25 excluding SISTIC fee. Group discounts/ Family Packages available
VENUE: KC Arts Centre – Home of SRT
TICKETING: SISTIC at 6348 5555 or www.sistic.com.sg
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The aftermath of the magical night , I hear let it go songs ringing in my household night and day .. Even the coming to 3 year old also sings it … It was truly a memorable night for all.

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In the last quarter of 2014, I found out that I am expecting my fourth baby and the better half of 2015 I was pregnant and busy. I didnt quite scale down the activities with my precious kids but i stop blogging and didnt do review etc. I simply didnt have the energy balancing work, kids and a major home project. My family was overseeing renovations on our new place and moving house twice (ie to the rented apartment then to the new house).After the move, i spent months unpacking, going for a babymoon and finally the month of May was to get ready for the arrival of our fourth precious kid. I am not sure if i can continue doing this while juggling with 4 kids under 6 but if i find snippets of time during my maternity to indulge myself in blogging, i may do so..and i have 2 reviews coming up this month. Stay tuned for it. Signing off by my latest addition, baby C

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