By Magdalen Ng

For musician Gan Ruo Xian, performing in Shanghai gives him a chance to convince his father that he made the right choice in pursuing his passion for music.

The 23-year-old is one of 33 young Singaporeans who will stage three shows at the annual Shanghai International Children's Theatre festival that runs from tomorrow to Aug 2.

It is the first time that the event will feature a Singapore Culture Week, coordinated by home-grown children's theatre group Act 3 International.

Guo chose to study music composition at Lasalle College of the Arts instead of going on to university like his peers after his A levels.

Although his parents - his father is a contractor and his mother a kitchen assistant - are supportive of what he is doing, his father is still sceptical about a career in the arts.

But Guo says: 'I want to show them what I can achieve if I put in the effort.'

A member of the gamelan ensemble at Lasalle, he will play one of his own compositions in Shanghai.

Also participating are students from Republic Polytechnic's School of Technology and the Arts, who will put up a visual theatre performance based on Antoine de Saint-Exupery's The Little Prince, and five dancers from Bhaskar's Arts Academy, who will perform an Indian classical dance.

The theatre, music and dance acts were put together only slightly more than a month ago, after Act 3 received an invitation to present the event.

The performers put in many hours of hard work on top of their school commitments, sometimes rehearsing till late at night.

But the performers did not seem to mind.

For Benjamin Kheng, a third-year theatre student at Republic Polytechnic, the time taken for practice was 'a break from the monotony of school'.

'Theatre is my passion and I really enjoy it,' says the 18-year-old, who will be acting in The Little Prince.

Nimmi Prabhat, a 21-year-old dancer who has been studying Indian classical dance since she was eight, wants to 'dispel the notion that youths nowadays do not embrace tradition'.

Ms Ruby Lim-Yang, artistic director of Act 3 and the Singapore Culture Week, will lead the group.

She is excited about showcasing talented young Singaporeans in Shanghai and hopes that all the acts will be well received.

She says: 'It's like giving someone a present - you don't know how they will react, but of course you want them to like it.'

This article was first published in The Straits Times.