Smith Street in China Town Singapore

Smith Street lies between South Bridge Road and New Bridge Road, and is located at the centre of Chinatown. The street may have been named after J.C. Smith who offered to defray cost of improving the road in 1853 to facilitate access for the inhabitants of that district. Smith Street is also said to be the birthplace of Cantonese opera in Singapore.In the early days, Smith Street was popularly referred to as hei yuen kai (theatre street) in Cantonese, a reference to the 834-seat Chinese theatre Lai Chun Yuen that used to be at 36 Smith Street. The theatre was built in 1887 and was very popular among the Cantonese community in Chinatown for its Cantonese opera. The popularity of the theatre gave rise to colloquial names for the streets surrounding it: Temple Street was known as hei yuen hau kai (theatre backstreet), and Trengganu Street was hei yuen wang kai, or “side street”. Between the 1910s and 1920s, performances at the theatre attracted packed audiences. Cantonese stars who performed at the theatre included Ma Shi Chan, Leong Seng Poh, Hong Xiannu and Luo Pin-chao.After World War II, street hawkers and traders selling household goods occupied the street. They were later relocated to Kreta Ayer Complex in 1983 after the building was completed. Smith Street also had a darker side – it was known as a red-light area with at least 25 brothels located there in 1901. It was only in 1930, after the Women and Girl’s Protection Ordinance had been enacted in the Straits Settlements, that prostitution was brought under control. The street was a popular venue for job seekers, who would congregate here in search of prospective employment.

- Size 37 by 28 cm / Quality Recycled Art Paper / Mounted with Thick Art Cardboard / Description on the Back / Transparent Protection Wrapper

Our mounted art prints are printed on recycled uncoated speckled art paper.