Gardens by the Bay's Children's Festival has 7m-high slide and Lilo & Stitch-themed play spaces
The Stitch-themed outdoor festival is also the first in the Asia-Pacific region. ST PHOTO: LIM YAOHUI
Gardens by the Bay's Children's Festival has 7m-high slide and Lilo & Stitch-themed play spaces
SINGAPORE – Kids can zip down a 28m-long slide from nearly 7m high, circling one of the world-famous Supertrees.
It is among the highlights at Gardens by the Bay's 11th annual Children's Festival from May 24 to June 15, featuring free play activities and installations inspired by Disney's Lilo & Stitch.
The live-action movie, which opens in Singapore cinemas on May 22, is a reimagining of the 2002 animated classic of the same name.
The Stitch-themed outdoor festival is also the first in the Asia-Pacific region.
Stitch, the beloved blue extraterrestrial which helps a lonely Hawaiian girl mend her broken family, will likely feel at home in the Supertree Grove. After all, some visitors have described its other-worldly architectural design as resembling an alien landscape.
Kids aged six to 12 can zip down The Great 'Ohana Wave, a 28m-long slide that is nearly 7m high, circling one of the world-famous Supertrees.
ST PHOTO: LIM YAOHUI
The Great 'Ohana Wave slide, designed for children aged six to 12, was unveiled in an exclusive preview for The Straits Times on May 21. For safety, kids must wear helmets and use round floats to go down the gentle slope.
The other three play spaces are open to kids of all ages. In a nod to Stitch's extraterrestrial origins, Space Adventure engages children in a cosmic mission where they navigate swing cars and compete to strike numerous light beams.
Seth Wang (left), five, and Aiden Heng, eight, race in swing cars in Space Adventure during ST's exclusive preview of Gardens by the Bay's Lilo & Stitch-themed Children's Festival.
ST PHOTO: LIM YAOHUI
Forest Of Belonging is a forest-themed inflatable where children can uncover hidden messages and the meaning of 'ohana, a Haiwaiian term for family.
Finally, Stitch's Mischief Makers offers a beach-themed play area with kinetic sand to encourage children's creativity and sensory development.
Kids can look forward to receiving a free activity booklet which complements the installations. Present the completed booklet at the redemption counter to receive a sticker sheet, while stocks last. They can also meet Stitch and snap a photo with the character on June 7 and 8.
Sisters Sophia, nine (left), and Sonia Wang, seven, explore the forest-themed inflatable playscape, Forest of Belonging.
ST PHOTO: LIM YAOHUI
Ms May Yeo, assistant chief executive at Gardens by the Bay, said: 'Through play at the thoughtfully curated installations, we hope that kids will receive a deeper appreciation of the true value of friendship and family, and the confidence to be who they truly are – just like in the story (of Lilo & Stitch).'
The play spaces close at 7pm daily, but do stay on to catch a special edition of the 15-minute Garden Rhapsody shows, titled The Way To 'Ohana, at 7.45 and 8.45pm. The lights on the Supertrees are programmed to synchronise with music from the 2002 Lilo & Stitch movie soundtrack.
Kids can play with kinetic sand at the beach-themed Stitch's Mischief Makers at Gardens by the Bay's Children's Festival.
ST PHOTO: LIM YAOHUI
And inspired by the film's Pacific setting, there are Plants On The Move! sessions on May 31 and June 14, led by Gardens by the Bay's Hawaii-born plant researcher.
Sign your kids up for the free 35-minute programme, which uses storytelling to teach them about plants brought by early settlers from South-east Asia to the central Pacific Islands.
Book it/Gardens by the Bay's Children's Festival featuring Disney's Lilo & Stitch
Where: Supertree Grove, Gardens by the Bay, 18 Marina Gardens Drive
When: May 24 to June 15, 10am to 9pm daily (play spaces close at 7pm)
Admission: Free; separate charges apply for carnival games and selected workshops
Info: str.sg/iJRe
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PHOTO: ZACK WITTMAN/NYTIMES Noticeably lacking in the mountains of merch? Lilo. The six-year-old protagonist of the franchise, and other human characters like her older sister Nani and Nani's love interest David , are rarely featured. A more prominently merchandised character is Angel, a female experiment introduced in the 2000s Lilo & Stitch TV series, who looks similar to Stitch but is pink. TikTok user Josi Cruz, who runs the @mainstreetorlando account, where she often highlights new Disney merchandise, said she believes children see themselves in the Lilo role, and tote their Stitch toys as if he were their pet. 'Lilo is very lonely. Girls bully her because she's 'weird'. But Stitch is always by her side,' she said. 'So, I feel like kids can identify with being Lilo themselves, and they just want to have Stitch in their lives.' Still, consumers can be fickle. In at least one North Carolina classroom, Stitch's days of reigning supreme are already dwindling. 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