[Blog Giveaway] Sir Waackalot, Winner Of 5th Gatsby Dance Competition(SINGAPORE) 2013

I was at the Singapore Finals of the prestigious 5th GATSBY Dance Competition on 2 February 2013, held at Far East Plaza. Screams & music were heard as I stepped into the building, feeling the adrenaline rush and getting the goosebumps.

Ok so where is the dance floor, I wanna see too!!!
Before that, let me scream first. (cannot control anymore)

*ARGHHhhhhhhhhhhhhhHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH...cough cough cough*
Okie I think that's enough.

Sad to say, I didn't manage to catch almost 3-quarter of the dance battles between the final 8 dance groups - ASH, Freekzy Nuts, 88's, The Basic Fives, We Will Be Back, LE' Femmes, Team  #YOMO and Sir Waackalot as I was having a performance meeting.

Knowing that Colin aka MinutemanSG has always been interested in dancing, I told him to be there at the event first and I'll join him later. He wrote a comprehensive blog post to bring you through the whole event again (In fact I think it's even more detailed than any other on-site information you'll find).

READ MinutemanSG's post on the 5th Gatsby Dance Competition 2013

ARGH, I can't squeeze through the onlooking crowd!
Alamak please let me through, I need to get to the media seats.

Then I caught sight of a familiar backview....
Immediately recognizing who he is, I shouted, "EH, WHY YOU BLOCK ME?!"

As usual, the soft-spoken Darren immediately turned around, almost ready to apologise when he realised it's me. We both cracked up.



HELLO DARREN SIM!

With his help, we managed to squeeze through the crowd to the media seats where Colin was already indulging in the dance performances (too busy to even realise I was there). I was in time to catch the last 3 performances.



You know why I love watching dance performances?
I can scream at the top of my lungs yet no one will think I'm mad.
I guess the good people sitting next to me got so annoyed that they handed me a clapper instead.

OPS.



Nevertheless, I continued screaming, ESPECIALLY for the last finalist, Sir Waackalot.
His dance performance was absolutely entertaining!

When Fishboy was inviting on stage to give out the awards, I wondered why the whole world started screaming & clapping louder than they did for Sir Waackalot. The deafening cheers, for goodness sake, went on for a good 2 minutes until Daen told me that Fishboy is a popular celebrity dancer and
choreographer from Japan.

OoooOooooo



Most importantly, I think everyone at the scene would agree with me on this - HE IS SOOOOOooo  Kawaii + Kakoi. He was one of the judges for this contest and according to them, he did a showcase earlier which made everyone fall in love with him. (of course I missed it.)

I googled and found dance videos of Fishboy.
From watching the videos, I know that he's giving (or gave) dance workshops in Taiwan, Singapore, Malaysia and more.

Here's my favourite video of him:



About GATSBY Dance Competition

GATSBY Dance Competition was created to bring together all young people who love GATSBY in Asia to join a popular activity among them, dance. The GATSBY Dance Competition is held in 8 different Asian countries (Hong Kong, Indonesia, Korea, Malaysia, Singapore, Taiwan, Thailand and Japan), where the winner of each leg moves on to compete in Tokyo, Japan, to be crowned as the No.1 Dancer in Asia.


The Awards & Winners of 5th Gatsby Dance Competition


The Greatest GATSBY Award
• SGD $3,000 cash prize
• An all-expenses paid trip to Tokyo for the Asia Finals
• GATSBY hamper
Won by: Sir Waackalot (Amin Alifin)







The only soloist dancer in this year's contest, here's SIR WAACKALOT's dance performance which got the house screaming their lungs out. You MUST must must must watch: http://youtu.be/yTIBtUEN-cM 

Oh yes, he didn't let me down and was crowned the championSINGAPORE 5th Gatsby Dance Competition! He'll be on his way to Toyko to compete against the winners of the other 7 Asian Gatsby Dance Competition. Let us wish him all the best!

Dear Amin,
Hold on to this passion for dancing.
You've set it on fire and never let this flame diminished.
Everyone saw it as you danced, that ball of flame which was glowing; something which everyone desires to possess yet in order to meet our current living standards, had no choice but to sacrificed it. We need passionate people like you in Singapore to inspire others from our generations as well as the future generations.

Show the world your passion and they'll remember you for life.
Good luck & enjoy your holiday!

I'll be cheering for you here~


The Great GATSBY Award (Runner-up)
• SGD $1,000 cash prize
• GATSBY hamper
Won by: Freekzy Nuts (Mohammad Alif Bin Rais, Al Azlan Shah Bin Rahman, Lam Jie Sheng)

GATSBY Award (2nd runner-up)
• SGD $500 cash prize
• GATSBY hamper
Won by: The Basic Fives (Kenneth Kwang, Cheong Wai Fong)

Fan Favourite Award
• SGD $500 cash prize (530 votes for their video)
Won by: 88’s (Robin Teh, Nicholas Ho, Melissa Lim)

Stylish Group Award
• GATSBY hamper
Won by: ASH (Tan Nian Shun, Alex Yip, Mohammed Hazri Bin Sapuan)

Creative Dance Award
• GATSBY hamper
Won by: We Will Be Back (Yeo Wei Sheng, Joshua Ting, Elisha Lim)

Here's a picture taken with FISHBOY!!!!
Wohoooooo~!

*Jumps like a happy fan of Fishboy*




Here, a picture with another popular celebrity dancer from Japan, Charisma Kantaro.
Charisma is also one of the Judges of the 5th Gatsby Dance Competition.




Famous for their active involvement in Japan’s dance scene, Fishboy and Charisma Kantaro specialise in street dancing and are known for their variety shows and organisation of Japan’s biggest dance events.


Watch their judge showcase last year, 2012:



Okie now is blog giveaway time!

==== MintLeong.sg Blog Giveaway ====

I'm giving this whole range of coolest Gatsby Products to the person who:

1. LIKE MintLeong.Sg Blog Facebook Page here.
2. Answer 2 extremely extremely simple questions about the 5th Gatsby Dance Competition posted on the FB page

The best answer will receive EVERYTHING you see in this picture:



Results will be published by 8 March 2013, Friday.

Follow Your Heart & Chase your dreams~

[MOVIE] Red Numbers 红字 Movie Gala Premiere

The Red Numbers Movie Gala Premiere was a major success!
The Grand Cathay Hall was FULL of supporters, friends & family.



Invited by Gim Goh, it was certainly my utmost honour to host on the Red Carpet with him.
Here's my best co-host partner of all times:

Chants: Gim Goh Gim Goh Gim Goh Gim Goh
Eh chant together leh, Gim Goh Gim Goh Gim Goh Gim Goh....





Here's a photo taken by Xavien as were were interviewing actor, Ckay:

Photo from: XavienPhoto





Red Numbers is about a story which revolves around a guy who, according to a fengshui master, only has 3 lucky minutes in his life. His fortune is wrapped up with a greedy family whose grandfather holds the key to the winning combination in the 4D lottery.



This is one movie with overwhelming amount of potential 4D numbers.
Prepare your 'Notes' app on your smartphone before the movie starts.

Red Numbers is a comedy-superstition-black humour-thriller-action-singaporean style movie.

It's Director Dom Ow's debut movie,

Reputable Feng Shui Master, Master Hui, first movie acting as one of the main cast,

Sugie Phua's first acting movie...

It's also a movie with many many, and I mean really many guest appearances by local celebrities.

You might not know their names, but i guarantee you'll spot so many familiar faces!

Plenty of pleasant surprises awaits so you HAVE to watch Red Numbers!

Photo taken from: Red Numbers Facebook Page

Catch Red Numbers in Cinemas on 22nd Feb 2013 (that's TODAY onwards)
Like and share their Facebook Page to support home grown local films.

[23 FEB 2013 SAT] Hosting For V Singer 2012 Live Music Showcase At Rhythms By The Bay

Remembered the V Singer 2012 singing contest I participated in Dec 2012?

All 57 of us graduated from the V Singer 2012 Intensive Music Course.
HURAYAYYY!

 The 13 most outstanding classmates were selected to continue their V Singer Journey and you can find out who they are by clicking on the V Singer Elite Team album.

In fact, I've cast my votes for ALL of them.
JIAYOU CLASSMATES!
~GO GO GO~

But if I really really have to choose my favourite performer so far at the Elite Team music Showcases,

then this person has to be
CLEON CLEAH
aka Fat Dragon

*PLEASE will someone upload that Gangnam Style song which he performed at Crazyworld Cafe on Youtube PLEASE! It's sooooo awesome I can watch it for another million times.*

Here's a snippet of Cleon's V Singer Valentine's Day Special performance at SCAPE on 8 Feb 2013.

Video taken from: V Singer Facebook Page

Cleon's really engaging.

A partnership with Marina Bay Singapore's Rhythms By The Bay, the 4th V Singer Elite LIVE Music Showcase is happening this weekend!

Photo Taken From: V Singer Facebook Page



THIS SATURDAY
23 FEB 2013
5PM - 7PM
Marina Bay Waterfront Promenade 
(That's the boardwalk in front of MBS)
Performing English & Mandarin songs.

Admission is FREE.

Hanrey Low aka Blur King from Ah Boys To Men & yours truly will also be there to host this awesome showcase.



PLEASE DON'T REQUEST FOR US to do the Harlem Shake on that day.
-.-"

Visit the Elite Team Live Music Showcase Event Page for more information.

Let's have lotsa fun together this Saturday!!!
See you!

[Media Invitations + Giveaway] Singapore Police Force(SPF) Events + Photo-taking with C.L.I.F. 2 Artistes

This is going to be a 3-in-1 post!

I'll be sharing about:

1. Pearl's Hill Historic Sites Marking Ceremony cum Police Heritage Centre (PHC) 10th Anniversary Celebration
2. Punggol Neighbourhood Watch Day
3. C.L.I.F 2 Drama + FREE GIVEAWAY

Let's start with Pearl's Hill Historic Sites Marking Ceremony + Police Heritage Centre (PHC) 10th Anniversary Celebration.



On 3rd Dec 2012, a ceremony was held to commemorate the marking of the Pearl's Hill Lower & Upper Barracks as historic sites. The Lower and Upper Barracks were jointly assessed by MHA & the National Heritage Board to be of strong historical significance to be marked as historic sites.

A historic site is different form a 'national monument', preserved and/or conserved' building.

Do you know the difference?

I didn't know until I read up about it and here's perhaps the simplest explanation sourced. Quoted from www.ask.com:
"A national park refers to an attractive area of countryside protected by the federal government for the pleasure of the general public or the preservation of nature. A national monument on the other hand is a geographical area preserved by the national government and maintained for public use. Finally, a national historic Site is a protected area that has historic significance."

The purpose of marking the buildings is a move to ensure that the rich history of these sites is not lost given the possibility of building redevelopment, modification & eventual demolition. This allows SPF to directly and quickly create awareness of the significance and history of these sites to prevent possible damage that may be irrevocable.

Background of Pearl's Hill Lower & Upper Barracks

I don't think we ever learn this in school, did we?
Let's walk down this memory lane together~

Where is Pearl's Hill in the first place?

Map taken from http://www.myonlinetour.com/poi/pearlhill/map.gif

Yes, it's near Chinatown!

The upper and lower Barracks were opened in 1934 by Sir Shenton Thomas, Governor of Singapore to house the Sikh Contingent of the Straits Settlement Police. The married members of the Sikh Contingent stayed at the Upper Barracks while the unmarried members of the Sikh Contingent stayed at the Lower Barracks. Sikh Contingent was introduced by the British in 1881 to combat rising crime in Singapore.

Upper Barracks:


Photo courtesy of SPF

Lower Barracks:


Photo courtesy of SPF

Following dissolution of the Straits Settlement in 1946, the Sikh Contingent disbanded and vacated to carious uses over the years. They were subsequently occupied by various Police Units such as the Radio Division which moved to the premises in 1948.

Combined Operations Room In Radio Division:

Photo courtesy of SPF

Hey, this Radio Division Room looks familiar...

I've been to this room at the Singapore Police Heritage Centre before!
I remembered picking up the phone up and listening to the calls made from people who needed help in those times, re-living the life in Singapore then.

There, see!


Radio Cars at Police Division

Photo courtesy of SPF

READ MORE about its HISTORY HERE.

If you haven't visit the Singapore Police Heritage Centre(PHC) before, yes it's opened to the Public in Police Headquarters in New Phoenix Park. For the past 10 years, PHC receives an average of 8,500 visitors per year, including students, teachers, officers, foreign delegates & members of the public.

The PHC encapsulates SPF's developments since the 1880s, holding a multifarious showcase detailing the history of the Force. The PHC has 3 Galleries:

1. The Commemorative Gallery gives tribute to the men & women in blue who had given their life in the line of duty and officers who have displayed acts of gallantry.
2. The Command Gallery honours past Commissioners of the Force who had upheld and enhanced the Police's role as the Force in the Nation.
3. The Main Gallery exhibits major chapters in the development of SPF.

Read my previous post here for photos I took at PHC and make your appointment with SPF to visit today.
Visits by APPOINTMENTS ONLY.

Punggol Neighbourhood Watch Day

I had expected it to be like the other SPF events I've been to, an event held in an air-conditioned room full of police officers. Turned out almost all the residents from the Punggol Neighbourhood were there!

Punggol Neighbourhood Watch Day is like a family day where everyone spent an afternoon at the venue with games to play, snacks to eat, exhibits on display, instant photo booth, programmes to watch & even a special appearance by C.L.I.F. 2 main artistes.

Also, congratulations to the Launch of Punggol NPC!



I was extremely impressed with the series of activities going on but aww man... I didn't come prepared for it as I've absolutely no idea that it was going to be a carnival. First thing first, my dressing was already wrong so I couldn't climb to the top of the amphitheatre to take photos of the entire carnival. Then, it was inconvenient for me to play the games which require throwing as I'm in a tube-dress. I should be wearing a plain top and pants/berms.

Guys, I wasn't fed with any information regarding this carnival so you have to forgive me for just feeding you with photos. I really wished I know everything to share with you.

But here goes nothing, a photo blog for you~

The weather was WERY HOT that day but it was the kind of weather best suited for carnivals!

Auntie, do you know that you were my thirst-quenching saviour!


The SPF band was staging a performance when I arrived.

Photo credits to: Colin, TheMinuteMan






Residents of Punggol pledged themselves on this board to join the Punggol COP:


I saw the name "Steven Lim" on it and thought of our infamous Steven Lim.


I reckoned it's another Steven Lim.



I received C.L.I.F. 2 Photo-taking Passes, thanks to SPF for the arrangement and because I had to be at the registration area, I missed the official Launch Ceremony as well as the March Pass!





The residents had to answer a simple question in order to win the same passes I got.

Colin and I manage to take photos with the SPF vehicles but I wished I could share with you more insights regarding these vehicles: how fast they can go, what special gadgets are installed in these vehicles, how many people/criminals each vehicle can take up to, where they sit etc. 

The Minute Man Singapore, Colin.



After 10 minutes of tracking & checking, we finally know that we have to answer a question posted in the exhibit in order to get a goodie bag. =.=









There's popcorn and kachang but I can see cannot eat because I have no food exhange coupon. Colin didn't manage to play any games too because the queue was too long.

(T____T)













Then I heard screams at the stage.
The C.L.I.F 2 artistes arrived and everyone literally FLOCKED at them.
YES FLOCKED >>>>

For a good 5 minutes, there was a lot of pushing, squeezing among everyone.


And the crowd just gets bigger.


And bigger.


The SPF Police officers proved their efficiency that day and I was impressed.
Crowd Control Index: 9.5/10

By the 6th minute, the officers managed to keep the crowd in control and the artistes are invited for an short interview on stage.

CLIF @ Punggol Watch Day



Here's a full footage of their interview I found on Youtube:


Then it was the photo-taking session.
ARGH I AM SO EXCITED!

Again, crowd control damn zai: 10 out of 10.


In the end we took a group photo with Aileen Tan, Shawn & Joanne Peh.
Li Nan Xing & Ruien is in ANOTHER GROUP!!!
OMG I can't take photo with Ruien... (T ____ T )



Sorry guys~~~

We asked if we could take photo with the 2nd group but the organizers said only 1 group.

Channel 8 C.L.I.F 2 Drama debuts tonight, 18th Feb 2013 at 9pm.

Ruien, you are SO CHIO so chio.



My Bff, SILVER ANG will also be acting in the drama!
YAYYY!

MUST watch okie!

==== MINT BLOG GIVEAWAY====

If you've been reading to this point, good for you because...
I'm giving away some C.L.I.F. 2 related goodies sponsored by the SPF!

All you have to do is:

• Like my Facebook Page NOW: www.facebook.com/MintLeong.
• Answer the question posted there about C.L.I.F.2. 
• Winners will be announced at the end of this week, 24 Feb 2013 on the facebook page.

What you win

1 Best answer gets brand new:

• C.L.I.F. 2 poster, 
• C.L.I.F. 2 2013 Calendar,
• C.L.I.F. DVD drama series

4 other winners gets 1 C.L.I.F. 2 Poster each.