CITRUS Fest 2026: A Celebration of Care in the Arts

Photo Credit: Expat Living

Singapore’s arts calendar is set to welcome a thoughtful and community-focused event with CITRUS Fest 2026: Kacang Puteh, Care-Oke?. Taking place from 21 to 30 August 2026, the biennial festival will bring arts workers and members of the public together for ten days of conversations, workshops, social gatherings and creative activities.

Held at 42 Waterloo Street, the festival will feature 20 programmes involving more than 50 arts practitioners and workers. While the event is designed with Singapore’s arts community in mind, anyone interested in care, wellbeing, accessibility and healthier working environments is welcome to attend.

What Is CITRUS Fest 2026?

CITRUS Fest 2026 is the second edition of the biennial CITRUS fest, a gathering centred on care practices in the arts. It is curated by CITRUS practices, a Singapore-based ground-up collective, in collaboration with the Arts Resource Hub and with support from the National Arts Council. The festival is also held in conjunction with the Singapore Night Festival.

The event takes a creative approach to a serious subject. Rather than presenting care as a formal checklist or an individual responsibility, CITRUS fest considers how people can build supportive relationships, share resources and create more sustainable ways of working.

Its playful theme, “Kacang Puteh, Care-Oke?”, reflects this approach. The programme uses food, games, karaoke and informal conversations to encourage people to connect while discussing important issues affecting the arts sector.

CITRUS practices stands for Care, Intimacy, Trauma-informed and Safer practices in the arts. The collective was formed by arts workers in 2020 during the COVID-19 pandemic. Its work includes workshops, resource articles and community gatherings designed to help arts workers develop practical knowledge and networks around care.

A Programme With Four Flavours

Visitors can choose from four programme categories, each offering a different way to participate.

Sweet and Spicy Get-Togethers

The sweet and spicy gatherings are social, relaxed and suitable for people who prefer to connect through shared activities. They include communal meals, karaoke, games and informal opportunities to meet other festival participants.

One of the featured activities is Care-oke Karaoke, where visitors can grab a seat, bring a friend and sing along. Games Night! Don’t Play Play~ offers an immersive tabletop gaming session that does not require previous experience.

The festival will also feature PONDOK: i want water, but the jar can’t hold, an opening communal dinner inspired by traditional banquet forms from the region. Later in the festival, Behind the Plate: Assembling a Production Meal will combine food with an open conversation about the work involved in creating production meals.

The Artists Village installation, Tonight, we are a village, reimagines the idea of an S-11 coffee shop and includes kacang puteh. Visitors can also spend time at the Rest & Digest Corner, a quieter area where they can take a break and browse selected materials from the festival.

Crunchy Workshops

The crunchy workshops focus on practical learning, reflection and new approaches to collaboration. These sessions are intended for people who want to examine how care can be incorporated into everyday professional practices.

Topics include nonviolent communication, inclusive contracts, collaboration riders and conflict management. Beyond Right and Wrong: An Introduction to Nonviolent Communication will look at ways of speaking kindly and listening deeply. Contracting and Collaborating as Vulnerable Subjects will consider how agreements can support more inclusive working relationships.

Another session, No Compromises Needed: Crafting Work with Care, draws on experience from Singapore’s theatre scene to examine conflict, collaboration and the rehearsal room. Self-Authority as Collective Power will take the form of a workshop-gathering focused on affirmations and divinatory practices.

These sessions may be especially useful for independent artists, producers, arts managers, educators and creative teams looking for more sustainable ways to work together.

Savoury Conversations

The savoury conversations create space for discussion and the exchange of different perspectives. They address subjects such as peer dialogue, artistic research, emotional labour and the future of care in the arts.

Listening to Voices of Care: What Now and What Next? will ask who supports arts workers when they are holding space for others in emotionally complex environments. The panel will consider how care can become a shared responsibility rather than an invisible burden placed on individuals.

Other sessions include in a round: Organising Dialogues with and for Peers, which focuses on practice-centred conversations and community building. Thesis Delibs will feature presentations connected to artistic research and Singapore’s changing cityscape.

How to Smell Spirits? will combine a screening with an open dialogue involving filmmakers, while offering another perspective on the ways creative work can be discussed and shared.

Mystery Huddle Puddle Sessions

The mystery sessions are presented by Huddle Puddle, a community of practice developed through CITRUS practices. Four groups have been working on projects intended to address gaps in care practices within Singapore’s arts ecosystem.

The sessions cover topics such as intimacy practices, accessibility, workload, wellbeing and new approaches to community participation. Making our Bed: Folding Care and Intimacy into our Culture will share perspectives on intimacy practices in Singapore.

Turning the ‘P-Age’: Dreams on Accessibility will feature excerpts from an accessible puppetry performance, followed by a dialogue with the creative team. Take Care, Or Else…Town Hall for New Beginnings offers a less formal format for artists to discuss change and fresh possibilities.

Hello, Hello, Can You Hear Me? will bring together sharing, games, discussions and food to consider how people navigate workload and wellbeing during the creative process.

When and Where Is the Festival?

CITRUS Fest 2026 will take place from Friday, 21 August, to Sunday, 30 August 2026. The main venue is 42 Waterloo Street, Singapore 187951, within the Bras Basah.Bugis arts and heritage precinct.

The venue is accessible by public transport. Bencoolen MRT Station is nearby, with Exit A serving the Downtown Line. Bras Basah MRT Station is also within reach, with Exit E serving the Circle Line. Several bus services operate along the surrounding streets, including services 7, 14, 16, 36, 106, 111, 124, 131, 147, 166, 167, 174, 175, 190, 502, 518 and 857.

Parking is available along Waterloo Street and in the basement car park at Waterloo Centre. There is no parking inside the festival venue.

Is Admission Free?

All CITRUS fest programmes are free of charge. However, selected sessions require registration through Peatix. Registration may be necessary for gatherings involving food, as well as workshops with limited capacity.

Visitors should check the individual programme listing before attending. Some sessions may accept walk-ins, while others may be available only to registered participants.

Food served at the festival will not contain pork, lard or alcohol, and vegetarian options will be available. Visitors who require halal-certified meals, vegan food or alternatives for allergies should provide their dietary requirements during registration.

Accessibility and Festival Etiquette

CITRUS practices has made accessibility and participant wellbeing an important part of the festival planning. Step-free access is available for sweet and spicy gatherings held on the ground floor. Some programmes in the Black Box take place on the second floor and require visitors to climb a flight of stairs.

Those who need support such as childminding, speech-to-text services or Singapore Sign Language interpretation can contact the organisers or include their requirements during registration. The festival will be conducted in English, although participants may draw on other languages and help with interpretation where possible.

A Rest & Digest Corner will operate throughout the festival. It is not described as a formal calm room, but it is intended to offer a quieter space with fewer stimuli. Festival team members wearing blue lanyards can also provide support if visitors feel uncomfortable or unsafe.

Photography and filming will take place for archival and publicity purposes. Visitors who do not wish to be photographed can collect a red lanyard from the front-of-house desk. Attendees are asked to respect people wearing one. The organisers also request that visitors do not film people speaking during sessions.

The festival follows the Chatham House Rule. If attendees share something discussed during a workshop or panel, they should avoid including details that identify the speaker or the people and organisations mentioned.

Why Attend CITRUS Fest 2026?

CITRUS Fest 2026 offers more than a standard arts event. It creates a setting where people can discuss the realities of creative work while meeting others through shared meals, games, workshops and performances.

Arts workers may find practical ideas for managing collaboration, communication, accessibility and emotional wellbeing. Members of the public can attend to learn more about the people and processes behind Singapore’s arts sector. The festival may also appeal to anyone interested in community building, workplace culture and inclusive participation.

With its combination of serious discussions and informal activities, the event aims to make conversations about care more approachable. Whether you attend a workshop, join a communal dinner, sing karaoke or spend time in the Rest & Digest Corner, CITRUS Fest 2026 provides different ways to take part at your own pace.

Before visiting, check the official programme listings for updated timings, registration requirements and access information. As all programmes are free but some have limited capacity, early registration is advisable for the sessions you would most like to attend.