Chinese New Year Entertainment Singapore: Hire Guide & Prices
What to book, what it costs in SGD, and why the first three days of CNY sell out by December.
Chinese new year entertainment in Singapore usually means a lion dance troupe as the anchor act, priced from around SGD 800 to 3,200 depending on troupe size and stunts, plus optional add-ons like a dragon dance, God of Fortune walkabout, or guzheng music set. Corporate office visits, mall activations and dinner programmes should be locked in by early December, because troupes offering the eve and first three days of CNY are largely booked out by mid-January. A single agency can bundle lion dance, emcee, cultural acts and dinner entertainment into one run of show.
- What a CNY entertainment company actually provides
- Chinese New Year entertainment prices in Singapore dollars
- How to hire chinese new year entertainers the right way
- CNY themed entertainment hire for company dinners
- Mall, condo and shophouse CNY activations
- Timing, permits and venue rules
- The most expensive mistake companies make
What a chinese new year entertainment company in Singapore actually provides
A CNY event company in Singapore does more than send a lion dance troupe. Most bookings fall into three groups: auspicious opening acts, cultural showcase performances, and a festive dinner or roving programme that keeps the event moving after the opening. As an event agency running CNY seasons since 2012, we find most clients anchor their event with one lion dance and build the rest of the programme around their venue, headcount and budget.
The opening tier covers lion dance, dragon dance, God of Fortune (Cai Shen) walkabouts and festive drum troupes. These are the acts that mark the occasion visually and give leadership a photo moment, usually through an eye-dotting ceremony where a director or CEO dabs the lion's eyes with a brush before the routine begins.
The cultural showcase tier covers guzheng, erhu and pipa musicians, Sichuan face changing performers, Chinese dance troupes, calligraphy artists and diabolo acts. These work well as a standalone corner during cocktail hour, separate from the main stage, and they suit clients who want something beyond lion dance without a full stage production.
The dinner and roving tier is where a Mandarin singer or oldies band, an emcee running a lo hei toss ceremony, roving mascots, and red packet or mandarin orange gifting come in. These fill the two to three hours after the opening act and are what separates a company CNY dinner from a five minute lobby visit.
2. PricesChinese new year entertainment prices in Singapore dollars
Prices in Singapore move on two things: troupe size and date. A standard lion needs two dancers plus one or two drummers. A premium routine with pole or bench stunts needs a more skilled troupe, more setup time, and space clearance. Dates matter just as much: the eve and the first three days of CNY run 20 to 40 percent above a normal weekday, because troupes are working several venues back to back on those specific days.
| Act | Typical price (SGD) | What is usually included |
|---|---|---|
| Single lion dance, standard (15 to 20 min) | 800 to 1,400 | 2 dancers, 1 to 2 drummers, cymbals, basic huat ah routine |
| Single lion dance with pole or bench stunts | 1,400 to 2,200 | Higher skill troupe, props, longer routine, photo moment |
| Twin lion dance | 1,800 to 3,200 | Two lions performing together, stronger visual for atriums |
| Dragon dance (9 to 12 metre dragon) | 2,000 to 4,500 | 8 to 12 performers plus drummer, needs open floor or outdoor space |
| LED lion dance (low light or evening) | 1,500 to 2,800 | Illuminated costume, suited to dinner and dance nights or dim ballrooms |
| Fortune God (Cai Shen) walkabout | 400 to 800 | 1 costumed performer, red packet photo walkabout, 30 to 45 minutes |
| Traditional music set (guzheng, erhu, pipa) | 500 to 1,200 | 1 to 3 musicians, 30 to 60 minutes, background or featured set |
| Festive drum troupe | 600 to 1,500 | Standalone drum performance or paired with lion dance entrance |
| CNY eve or first three days surcharge | +20% to 40% | Peak date loading, confirm exact figure at quote stage |
These are Singapore market ranges that shift with the season and with how many bookings a troupe already has on that date. Treat the table as a planning guide and get the exact figure confirmed against your date, venue and headcount. Venue access fees, loading bay restrictions and firecracker permits are usually quoted on top of the performance fee, not folded into it. Our lion dance price list breaks this down further by troupe size and stunt level.
3. BookingHow to hire chinese new year entertainers the right way
To hire chinese new year entertainers in Singapore, you need to give the agency four things upfront: the date, the venue address and floor, the time slot, and whether you want firecrackers, a drum set, or red packets included for a giving ceremony. A reputable troupe will ask about ceiling height before confirming, because pole jump and bench routines need clearance that low mall ceilings or function room false ceilings sometimes do not have.
A few things catch first-time bookers out. Singapore troupes are almost always Cantonese Southern lion style, which is louder and more acrobatic than the Northern style some clients have seen abroad. If your event lead is expecting the Northern look, flag the difference before the booking is confirmed, not on the day. Confirm also whether cymbal and drum noise is permitted in your venue: hotel ballrooms with an event running next door will sometimes cap volume or ask for a quieter routine.
For office visitations across multiple floors or multiple entities in one building, ask whether the troupe charges per stop or a flat half-day rate for four to six short visits. This changes the total meaningfully once you are past three stops. Our lion dance booking guide covers the per-stop versus flat-rate question in more detail, and our full acts and services page lists every act available for the season, including the dragon dance troupe option for larger open floors.
4. Corporate CNYCNY themed entertainment hire for company dinners
CNY themed entertainment hire for a company dinner usually needs to do double duty: mark the festival and give management a clean photo moment with staff or clients before the room moves into food. The standard corporate run of show is a five to ten minute welcome speech, a 15 to 20 minute lion dance with the eye-dotting ceremony, then a lo hei toss ceremony led by an emcee, followed by a red packet distribution or lucky draw, then dinner service begins.
For dinner and dance events specifically, an LED lion dance often outperforms a daylight troupe, because the lighting effect is built for a darkened ballroom and slots in cleanly as the opening act right after the emcee's welcome. If your D&D already has a live band and emcee booked, the lion dance sits as a 15 minute segment before the first course. Coordinating that timing between the emcee, the band and the troupe is exactly where booking through one agency saves real friction on the night rather than three separate suppliers trying to sync a run sheet by email. Our dinner and dance event planning page covers how that sequence is typically built, and our emcee rates page has current pricing for the host running the lo hei and games segment.
Larger companies running visitations across a business park sometimes book two troupes on the same morning to cover separate buildings within the same time window, since one troupe physically cannot be in two places at once. Plan this into your December booking, not your January one.
5. Malls and estatesMall, condo and shophouse CNY activations
Mall atriums, condo function lawns, shophouse frontages and clan association halls each have different constraints that change what you can book. Mall atriums usually have decent ceiling height for pole stunts but tight floor space, which favours a single lion over twin lion or dragon dance. Condo management committees often want a shorter, family-friendly slot around 20 to 30 minutes with mandarin orange and red packet gifting for residents, paired with roving mascots for children.
Shophouses and clan associations sometimes still request firecrackers as part of the ritual, which needs a police permit arranged well in advance, and this is one of the few CNY bookings where the paperwork lead time matters more than the performer's availability. Temples and larger estate celebrations occasionally combine a dragon dance with a lion dance troupe for a longer procession, but this needs genuine open floor: a 9 to 12 metre dragon crammed into a standard aisle looks worse than a well executed lion dance in the same space.
6. TimingTiming, venues and the booking window for lunar new year entertainment hire
Lunar new year entertainment hire in Singapore runs on a tighter calendar than most corporate clients expect. Chinese New Year falls in late January or February and the celebration runs 15 days from the eve to Chap Goh Mei. Companies, malls, condos, shophouses, temples and clan associations start booking from November, and by early December the peak week, meaning the eve plus the first three days, is filling fast. By mid-January, well known troupes are largely booked out for those specific dates.
Most corporate events land in the working week before the actual eve, since the eve and first two days are family time for most staff. Weekday slots in the two weeks after CNY day itself usually still have availability, since many companies push their office visitations into that quieter window rather than competing for the first weekend. We have worked CNY seasons at Marina Bay Sands, Suntec, Resorts World Sentosa, Capella, Shangri-La, Raffles, Fullerton and most major hotel ballrooms and office towers around Singapore, and the pattern holds every year: the first three days and the first weekend go first.
The most expensive mistake companies make
Waiting until January to book a lion dance for the first week of CNY. By mid-January the well known troupes for that specific window are gone, and companies end up either paying a heavy last-minute premium for a mediocre troupe or pushing their event to a date that clashes with their own dinner and dance or client visit schedule. Confirm your date in November if you want the first three days, and by early December for anything else in the peak week.
Send us your event date, venue and headcount on WhatsApp at +65 9428 4249 and we will send back a quote within a working day, with alternatives if your preferred date is already booked out.
Frequently asked questions
How much does chinese new year entertainment cost in Singapore?
A single lion dance runs from around SGD 800 to 1,400 for a standard 15 to 20 minute routine, up to SGD 2,200 with pole or bench stunts. Twin lion dance runs SGD 1,800 to 3,200 and a dragon dance from SGD 2,000 to 4,500. Add-ons like a Cai Shen walkabout or guzheng set run SGD 400 to 1,200. The eve and first three days of CNY add a 20 to 40 percent surcharge.
How far in advance should I hire chinese new year entertainers?
Book by early December for anything in the peak week, which is the eve plus the first three days of CNY. Well known troupes are largely booked out for those specific dates by mid-January. Weekday slots in the two weeks after CNY day itself usually still have availability, since many companies shift their office visitations into that quieter window.
Do I need a permit for lion dance or firecrackers in Singapore?
The lion dance performance itself does not need a permit. Actual firecrackers, sometimes requested for shophouse or clan association ceremonies, need a police permit arranged well in advance. Most corporate and mall bookings use a recorded drum roll or a firecracker sound effect instead, which avoids the permit process entirely and is what most venues in Singapore now require.
What is included in a standard lion dance booking?
A standard booking includes two dancers, one to two drummers, cymbals and a basic huat ah routine lasting 15 to 20 minutes. Higher tier bookings add pole or bench stunts, a second lion for a twin performance, or an eye-dotting ceremony prop set for a company director photo moment. Venue access fees and any permit costs are usually quoted separately from the performance fee.
What is the difference between lion dance and dragon dance for a company event?
Lion dance uses two performers per lion and works in tighter spaces like office lobbies, mall atriums and standard ballroom aisles. Dragon dance uses 8 to 12 performers moving a single 9 to 12 metre dragon and needs a genuine open floor or outdoor space to look right. Most corporate offices and hotel ballrooms book lion dance; dragon dance suits larger estate or temple celebrations with real floor space.
Can one agency handle the whole CNY event, not just lion dance?
Yes. A CNY event company in Singapore typically bundles the lion dance with an emcee for the lo hei toss ceremony, a Mandarin singer or oldies band for the dinner segment, roving mascots, and red packet or mandarin orange gifting, all coordinated through one run of show. This avoids the timing friction of managing three or four separate suppliers on the night.
What is a lo hei toss ceremony and do I need an emcee for it?
Lo hei, also called yusheng toss, is a Singapore and Malaysia CNY custom where guests toss a raw fish salad together while saying auspicious phrases, believed to bring good fortune for the year ahead. Most corporate dinners run this with an emcee leading the phrases and timing, usually straight after the lion dance segment and before the first course is served.
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