PUTRAJAYA: This year's National Day human graphics performance will feature 16 songs and props such as kompang and trampolines in a revamped show that organisers say will deliver "more wow" than last year.
Education Ministry Sports, Co-curriculum and Arts director Ithnin Mahadi said the display would have three main differences from previous years.
The number of pupils performing has been trimmed to 1,500 from 2,000, while this year's line-up will blend the latest Gen Z hits with traditional asli songs.
Ithnin said props would also be woven into the routines.
"The audience will see... performances with kompang, trampolines and so on.
"When I asked the officer managing the performance, he said there would be 'more wow'.
"So let's wait and see how the wow factor compares with last year," he told reporters at Dataran Putrajaya here on Monday (Aug 24).
The 1,500 pupils are drawn from 36 schools.
Ithnin said they were identified as early as July and first trained at their own schools before being brought together for the final phase on site in the closing weeks ahead of Aug 31.
He said the full rehearsal would involve all 16 songs.
Ithnin, who has been involved in the National Day parade's human graphics segment since 2021, said the biggest challenge was mobilising the children and looking after their welfare, from food and drink to transport.
He said moving pupils from 36 schools over several months came at a fairly high cost, and thanked the Communications Ministry for its support each year.
On the hot weather, Ithnin said the pupils only moved to the open site in the past few days, having earlier trained in a hall while the stage was built.
He said sessions began early in the morning and the pupils rested by about 11am each day to avoid exposure to the heat, adding that the air pollutant index (API) reading in Kuala Lumpur remained good so far.
