BTBAF's 5th Anniversary
Date: 11 May 2010
Time: 6.30 - 9.30 pm
Venue: The Arts House

To celebrate its 5th anniversary since inception by The Old Parliament House Ltd (a not-for-profit organisation incorporated by the National Arts Council) and adoption by The Business Times in 2005, The Business Times Budding Artists Fund presented an extraordinary evening of 

entertainment and culinary utopia, held amidst the magical ambience of The Arts House (the former Parliament House of Singapore). Steeped in history, Singapore’s oldest government building was a fitting backdrop for celebrating 5 years in which generous contributions from corporations and individuals alike have enabled the BT BAF to provide access to an education in the Arts for children from economically disadvantaged homes. 

Programme for Gala Dinner on11th May at The Arts House 

Executive Chef Prachan Vong-Uthaipan was specially flown in from Thailand to create a special culinary experience for the gala dinner held on 11 May 2010. 33 Primary One and Two beneficiaries of BT BAF danced, ran around in pajamas pretending their bed was a sailing ship and 

acted out a series of self-written of what they would like to be when they grow up. 

Based on the theme of the poem “I Wandered Lonely As A Cloud” by William Wordsworth, guests were invited to move from room to room to watch different performances ranging from pop songs to choral singing, hip-hop dance to ballet. 

The abovementioned poetry recital, as well as an auction of four art pieces created by the child beneficiaries, were part of a Sony ‘make.believe’ ART programme conducted at The Little Arts Academy. The Sony make.believe ART programme was initiated by Sony as part of its global make.believe campaign and aims to help children from low-income families fulfil their dreams through the harmony of technology and arts. The programme was based on the theme of “The World I’d Like To See When I Grow Up”, and ran for over 13 weeks with training in visual arts and theatre.  

Under the mentorship of award-winning visual artist Donna Ong, 40 Primary 1 & 2 beneficiaries produced art pieces using Sony products. Donna Ong has used some of these art pieces to co- create four art pieces that will be auctioned off at the BTBAF 5th Anniversary Gala Dinner, and all proceeds from this auction were donated to The Business Times Budding Artists Fund.  

Fund Raising for 2010 

This Gala Dinner forms part of BT BAF’s fund raising activities for the financial year 2010. The Dinner was priced at $300 per person or $3000 per table of 10, and BT BAF raised $32,800 from the dinner and auction and an additional $70,000 in cash and kind from Sony through its make.believe programme. All nett proceeds from this Gala Dinner go to the Business Times Budding Artists Fund.  

On average, it costs $250 per student per term for a course in the Arts.  BT BAF targets to raise $600,000 this year to fund 500 needy children over four terms in a calendar year to undergo training at The Little Arts Academy. Additionally, The Business Times Budding Artists Fund also aims to reach out to 1600 disadvantaged children in short-termprogrammes to expose them to the arts, and identify those with keen interest or talent to pursue an arts education at The Little Arts Academy.