The Singapore International Festival of Arts (SIFA) 2020 will be taking a hiatus for the time being in light of the recent measures put forth by the government in an attempt to contain the spread of the coronavirus, which include the cancellation of all ticketed events with over 250 people. 

The festival organisers confirmed the cancellation of the festival, which was set to take place from 15 - 31 May, in an official statement earlier today (23/03). Sarah Martin, CEO of Arts House Limited (AHL), says “The line-up of shows in SIFA this year received an overwhelmingly positive response from the public and press alike, cementing its place as Asia's leading arts festival. While we are all disappointed by this decision to no longer hold the festival in May, the safety and well-being of our patrons, artists and staff will always be AHL's number one priority."

According to the statement, the SIFA team is in contact with full-time practitioners, freelancers, and contract staff affected by the pandemic to help mitigate the impact of the situation, and will also be working with the local arts groups involved in the festival to offer more arts experiences in the upcoming months. 

SIFA Festival Director Gaurav Kripalani reflected on the hiatus, acknowledging that while it was "gut-wrenching" for the team and a "huge disappointment" for all the artists, they all "fully support and recognise that these are extraordinary times that require extraordinary measures in order to keep everyone safe".

"I look forward to working with NAC, AHL, and the arts community to make sure our national arts festival grows from strength to strength when we overcome this current challenge," he added. 

Read their full statement here. 

Tan Dun, Taylor Mac, Wired Aerial Theatre, The Wind Quintet, No Longer Gagok: Room 5 by Park Minhee, Daily Tous les Jours. and The Observatory were set to perform at the festival this May.