Singapore National Theatre

Previously an important landmark, the former National Theatre (Chinese: 国家剧场) was built on the slope of Fort Canning Park along River Valley Road in the Museum Planning Area of Singapore. The theatre, with a capacity of 3,420 seats, was officially opened on 8 August 1963 to commemorate Singapore's self-government and was the first and largest national theatre in Singapore back then. It was the venue for various international performances, universities' convocations and the National Day rallies until it was demolished in mid-1986 to make way for construction of Singapore's first MRT lines which opened in 1987 .

Costing S$2.2 million to build, the theatre was designed by local architect Alfred Wong in 1963 after his firm won a design competition to build the first national theatre. It had 3,420 seats and was built with funds jointly donated by the Singapore government and the public through "a-dollar-a-brick" campaign with song requests made on radio. On 14 May 1964, The then Minister for Culture, S Rajaratnam, formally received the keys of the theatre from the company which carried out the construction said: "The theatre provides a good example of how the success of any effort depends ultimately on the co-operation and dedication of people from all walks of life."

AWP Pte Ltd were the Architects of the building. The most significant feature of the National Theatre was its huge 150-tonne cantilevered steel roof which stretched to the slopes of Fort Canning; a five-pointed facade which represented the five stars of the Singapore flag in the same way as its outdoor fountain was supposed to represent the crescent moon. The theatre had no side or rear walls and only the huge roof shielded the audience from the elements. It also had a revolving stage which was rarely used and cost S$10,000 annually to maintain.

Many important performances were staged at the National Theatre from 1966 to 1982, the annual National Day Rally was held at the theatre too. Its first show, the Southeast Asian Cultural Festival, was attended by 11 Asian countries such as princesses from Cambodia, glamorous film stars from Hong Kong and folk dancers from all neighbouring countries. These performers were taking part for the first time in which the First President of Singapore, Encik Yusof bin Ishak described the event as a "South-East Asian cultural renaissance".

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Wikipedia