This is a program booklet for Peter Scriven's marionette show. The performance was presented by the National Theatre Trust - a key cultural organization of the 1960s. The National Theatre Trust formed in 1960 was tasked with administering the National Theatre and promoting arts and culture to foster a Malayan identity among the citizens. In 1961 the Minister for Culture , S Rajaratnam appointed the Board of Trustees for the National Theatre Trust – The chairman was Lee Khoon Choy and members included leading artistes and practitioners such as Zubir Said and K. P. Bhaskar. The National Theatre opened in 1963 (till 1984) was a potent symbol of collective civic pride and aspirations. It was built to celebrate Singapore’s achievement of self-government in 1959 and with funds partly contributed by the public. Designed by the renowned architect Alfred Wong (b 1930) this building had a distinct five-pointed façade and the crescent-moon shaped fountain in the front - visual elements derived from the national flag. The spectacular structure set against the slopes of Fort Canning hill with its large 150-tonne steel cantilevered steel-roof overhanging an open-air auditorium that seated some 3,420 and with a revolving stage was not just ambitious but signalled the creation of a new national architectural idiom. Thus the theatre was a very popular venue for many local and international performances.
