Back in spotlight

At the Peranakan Museum, a public museum under the care of the National Heritage Board, international visitors make up about 45 percent of its total visitor numbers each year, said Noorashikin Zulkifli, deputy director of curatorial, education and interpretation and principal curator of Islamic art and Peranakan at the Peranakan Museum.

As there is demand for more diverse and unique cultural experiences, the public museum has been working with several cultural associations to organize events that create immersive experiences.

"One way we've been able to bring new visitors to the museum is through the recent edition of Armenian Street Party, where we hosted a weekend of interactive and engaging activities," Zulkifli said.

Apart from being drawn to the vast collection of lacquered rosewood furniture, intricately beaded accessories and fine dining ware on display at the museums, tourists also attend bespoke cultural talks, nyonya tea sampling and family-based engagement such as tile painting, so as to have a richer Peranakan cultural experience.

"European tourists and groups of lecturers, teachers and students want a deep dive into the culture, and that will be a much longer program," Ng said. "And visitors from China are interested in cultural talks and posing for photos in the kebaya."

While Peranakan culture is currently enjoying a renaissance of sorts, Ng and her museum team are among those that are helping to transform Peranakan culture, so that it will evolve and adapt to the present day and beyond.

"During the Singapore Art Week in January, we held workshops where we reimagined the look of the sarong kebaya — how a traditional piece like a kebaya can be adapted into contemporary wear," Ng said.

"We also plan to hold more workshops specialized in Peranakan art and culture. We see this as our contribution and the way forward in keeping Peranakan heritage alive."

Zulkifli said the Peranakan Museum hopes to be able to showcase more lesser-known aspects of Peranakan art and culture to even more audiences in the years to come.

"Peranakan culture can be an inspiration for an increasingly globalized society where we not only champion cross-cultural connections that can give rise to new expressions, aesthetics and practices, but also embrace the complexities that mixing cultures can bring," she said.

With the spin-off of The Little Nyonya being aired in March and later this year in China, Ng said she and her team are anticipating even more Chinese tourists to step through their doors once Emerald Hill — The Little Nyonya Story is aired in China.

"People are drawn to the grace and mystique behind the Peranakan lifestyle," Ng said. "Chinese tourists recognize it now as a 'must-see' while they are in Singapore."

The writer is a freelance journalist for China Daily.