The Japanese Occupation: the Old Ford Factory version

Posted by Tym under Explore Singapore!
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Like all Singapore kids who went through school from the 1980s onwards, I’ve had more than my fair share of being forcefed the history of Singapore’s trials and tribulations during the Japanese Occupation (1942-1945, for anyone who doesn’t have those dates burned into their brain). Not that we know all there is to know about that period, but we’re used to hearing and seeing the same old lines about survivial/determination/fortitude/resilience whenever there’s a new show/exhibit/event on this topic.

So it was refreshing to hit the Ford Factory Fiesta on Saturday and be greeted by a lively puppet play by The Finger Players which went beyond the usual propaganda lines to bring out the inevitable drama of living in such trying times.

With or without puppets, the Finger Players’ show was gripping stuff. To merely describe it as “a family whose life is turned upside-down by war” does it no justice. Sure, there was the usual family drama, but the play also gave a stronger resonance and immediacy to the seemingly mundane day-to-day decisions of war, from trading cigarettes to patrolling the neighbourhood.

The more typical story of the Japanese Occupation was told in the Memories of Old Ford Factory gallery itself, but even then there were surprises. Like the mystery over who carried the Union Jack to the British surrender to the Japanese in 1942 (you’d think they’d be able to tell from the photographs, but the saga’s not that simple), or Governor Shenton Thomas’s addendum to his radio address, reminding whoever it was that they should not identify him as the governor anymore.

Unrelated to the events of the Occupation, it turns out that the Old Ford Factory uses an environmentally friendly solar energy system. I’m not sure why this information was conveyed in the middle of the entire exhibition, but it did make for a nice break in the midst of a narrative of doom and gloom.

It was a little hot outside, so I ducked into the theatre to enjoy the airconditioning a little longer — and was rewarded with a viewing of The Battle of Bukit Chandu, made by Nanyang Polytechnic students. Of course, there’s no footage of the battle, so the entire short film is animated and wow, what a job they did. Not so much in terms of big-bang explosions, but in bringing to life a story that’s received a lot of deadening attention lately and reinvigorating it in a way that no textbook narration or static exhibit could.

When I finally emerged outside, the puppet show was having another run, kids were trying their hand at old-time games of congkak and hantam bola, and the tree was sitting pretty in the midst of it all.