Business With An Arts Handshake

This year, Spotlight Singapore in Cape Town put on a show. Iskandar Ismail composed a 50-minute musical entitled Selamat that brought together South African and Singaporean musicians and singers; and anthology of Singaporean prose and poetry was launched and Singapore chefs cooked up favourites such as laksa and kueh pie tee... and the courting seems to be paid off on the South African side.

Guy Lundy, the CEO of Accelerate Cape Town which promotes South African trade with other markets, found Spotlight Singapore's format more sincere than most other business delegations..."This is different because it's not just about business. It's also about the similarities between the two places..."

Source: The Business Times, Friday, March 25, 2011.
To read more, simply email aces@spaces.org.sg

Spotlight Singapore did Singapore proud

I RECENTLY attended the fourth edition of Spotlight Singapore organised by the Old Parliament House Limited in Cape Town, South Africa, from March 16 to 21.

It was my first time and I enjoyed it tremendously. Most importantly, I was inspired by the many talented and artistically inclined individuals who have done Singapore proud through a vibrant showcase of performing and visual arts to the South Africans.

- Ms Gayle Wong
www.straitstimes.com/STForum

Musical Melting Pot Melts Hearts

It was for the best that local composer Iskandar Ismail's newest work, Selamat, debuted overseas in the music halls of downtown Cape Town instead of Singapore, where its commentary on cultural clashes might have been even more lost on the crowd.

Selamat tackled the theme of the difference in understanding when a South African woman - featuring the throaty-voiced Vicky Sampson - meets and interacts with a Singaporean man, George Chan, of Miss Saigon fame.

Ismail's soundtrack was by no means a weepy ballad, which Kenyan-born students shed tears as they sat in the audience...

Source: The Business Times, Friday, March 25, 2011.
To read more, simply email aces@spaces.org.sg

Talking Business with a Twist in Cape Town

Spotlight Singapore puts a softer spin on business with food, cultural shows.

March 16 marked the start of Singapore's engagement with the newest member of the BRIC economies, South Africa.

Over 60 business delegates from Singapore and South-eat Asia spent March 16 to 20 in Cape Town, doing business with South African companies - albeit not on the typical business mission...

Source: The Business Times, Monday, March 21, 2011.
To read more, simply email aces@spaces.org.sg

Winners of Creative Business Competition

Congratulations to Alex Lim, Lee Meijie and Vicky Adijanto from Nayang Technological University Business School on winning the business competition. The team will receive a cheque of S$2,500.

Contribution to the Nelson Mandela Foundation

Part of the sale proceeds from Africa, Where Nature Dances – An Artist's Journey exhibition, held as a lead-up to Spotlight Cape Town, went to the Nelson Mandela Foundation. Spotlight Singapore is honoured to present the cheque of R160,000 to the foundation on the closing night of Spotlight Singapore in Cape Town.

The exhibition took internationally known artist Rupa Natarajan's passion for African scenes further from her earlier renowned exhibition African Odyssey. In the exhibition, her watercolours and oils of people and wildlife emphasise action and motion. Her creative process was also highlighted through a display of sketches made on site during her expedition.

Read more about Rupa and her works at www.rupanatarajan.com