"Based on Justice and Equality.."

NDP has been a pain to watch for so long, that I can hardly remember the last time I sat through the ENTIRE show. Was it 3 or 4 years ago? Glenny boy has since been dumped for Madame Ivanna for this year's parade, which centered on the National Pledge. His personal statement about the pent-up indignation was made loud and clear when he choreographed the Parade just like a mini Mardi Gras (+1) - pole dancers, crossdressing bibiks, wicked arrangements of Madonna and other club hits, and if you are observant, an image of a grandma attending the recent PinkDotSg event.

And he stayed true to his theatrical roots, and veered away from the usual sleep-inducing sequence of mass displays. He roped in various talents from the arts scene (+1) - local band Electrico, local acapella group Vocalupticious, the Peranakan community arts group and budding Wild Rice singers/actors; as he aimed to educate the stodgy politicians that local budding arts scene is worth investing in.

Also, very importantly, he made the Parade an all-inclusive event. He did his best to include different elements to entertain the different segments of viewers (+1) - there are the mass displays and combined choir that the old folks enjoy, and there are the MTV music and dance elements to cater to the younger crowd. Efforts were also made to refresh familiar nation-building songs with new musical arrangements. Sweet.

Many people are impressed with the multi-storey "hdb blocks" that provided an interesting montage of performers (+1). It's about time somebody imported this shimmy stage idea to Singapore. Now where have I seen it before - here? And local designers must have heaved a sigh of relief as there are no fabrics and colours that make the costumes look like scraps from the karang guni in this year's parade (+1). I especially heart the red dot themed dresses, which is probably inspired by this.

My favourite has to be the segment on Singaporean pre-schoolers and their ambitions. Everyone is tickled by their honest and innocent replies (kids never lie!), but it is most cheekiest that Mr Heng and team included the adorable girl gushing "I want to be Kylie Minogue!" (+1,000,000).