On the evening of Saturday, 14th March 2026, Singapore Ring 115, aka The Great Wong Ring, marked a historic milestone with a grand 75th Anniversary Gala at the Pan Pacific Hotel. The event was a spectacular showcase of fellowship and illusions, attended by 130 guests, including esteemed patrons, representatives from the Society of American Magicians, and the family of the late Great Wong. The occasion was also graced by international guest magicians: Glen Bailey (Hawaii), James & Sulin Posy Prado McKusky (USA), and Barry Khoo (Malaysia).
Guests arrived as early as 6 pm for pre-dinner drinks and socialising. They were treated to walk-around magic by our members. At 7 pm, following an opening address by President John Teo, the banquet began.
Throughout the dinner, magic continued at the tables with close-up performances by members. During the formal proceedings, President John Teo honoured those who contributed to the Ring over the past year with tokens of appreciation. He also conducted an Induction Ceremony for 2 new full members Dave Karyadi, and Henry Zuo.
After dinner, the emcees transitioned the ball-room into a theatre-style setting for a high-energy stage show.
Alex Tan opened the show with a breath-taking Chinese Face–Changing (Bian Lian) act. Donning different masks to depict the different characters in Chinese folklore, Alex changed the masks on his face one at a time at lighting speed. The final mask magically vanished to reveal the real face of the performer.
Following up with the Chinese theme, Vice-President Ng Kah King presented a Chinese version of the Kuma Tubes known as “Luo Quan Xian Cai”. With 2 empty cylindrical covers, he produced a myriad of items, culminating to the appearance of an impossibly large wine urn. He concluded his act with an improved Losander floating table with an audience participant, the table finally vanished under the cloth cover.
Joe Yu brought drawings to life by manifesting a 15 lb bowling ball from a sketchpad. He placed his lady assistant inside a cabinet, collapsed the top part, and pushed a huge cylinder through the bottom part of the cabinet. When the cabinet doors were opened, his lady assistant emerged unharmed together with a gigantic teddy bear!
Zhang JinMing performed a stunning prediction piece involving the colours of the Chinese God of Fortune’s attire, which matched the audience choices perfectly.
Ian Tan delivered a poignant tribute to the late Jeremy Pei with his masterful rendition of the Chinese Linking Rings routine.
Nique Tan, “The Real Mentalist”, showcased incredible mathematical prowess with the inexhaustible digits of Pi. His next act was Marc Paul’s “Decision, Decision, Decisions” in which 5 men and one lady from the audience made decisions regarding colours that seemed to be influenced all along by the performer.
Joseph Then, who was one of the emcees, provided the comedic highlight of the night with his ventriloquism routine with his vulture dummy. He then turned Stage Producer Eisen Lee into a human puppet by attaching a dummy mouth onto Eisen’s face. The hilarious dialogue and antics that followed with this live dummy left the audience in fits of laughter.
In the curtain call that followed, Vice-President Ng Kah King rallied all the performers on stage and thanked the dedicated crew.
All who attended were given a name tag as well as a magical door gift provided by Gician Tan.
The lucky draws featured cash vouchers from various commercial establishments, instead of physical items. The top 2 prizes comprising a total of $500 were contributed by Victor and his sister Angeline Ng.
JK Tan and Joseph Then were the 2 emcees who hosted the evening and introduced the various performers.
Our thanks also go to the following people:
- Event producer – Kenneth Chia
- Magic Show producer – Eisen Lee
- Reception – Rebecca Seet & Jennie Teh
- Stage Hands – Luke Tan & Ivan Lee, Dave Karyadi & Lim Shi Jie
- Finance – Victor Heng
- Backdrop – Kenneth Chia & Joseph Then
- Audio system – Ang Kun Rong
- Visuals – Baharudin
- Photographs – Martin Tan
It was an unforgettable evening of great fun, sumptuous food, infectious laughter and fabulous magic!
Reported by
JOHN TEO
