Donald Moore

From the 1950s to the mid-1970s, Donald Moore brought world-famous orchestras, theatre performances, cultural productions, and musicians to Singapore, including the London Philharmonic Orchestra, Martha Graham and her Dance Company, mime artist Marcel Marceau, prima ballerina Margot Fonteyn, the Royal Shakespeare Company, and boxing champion Muhammad Ali. His productions were supported by major sponsors, including Singapore Airlines, BP Singapore, and Barclays Bank.

Born in 1923 in Leicestershire, UK, Donald Moore arrived in Singapore in 1947, where he worked to establish distribution avenues for British publishing houses. He founded Donald Moore Ltd (Singapore) in the early 1950s, followed by Eastern Universities Press and Asia Pacific Press, publishing numerous books on the history and cultural developments of Southeast Asia, including Far Eastern agent, or, The diary of an Eastern nobody (1953) and The first 150 years of Singapore (1969).

Beyond publishing, Moore became a key figure in Singapore’s arts scene, producing and presenting a wide range of events and performances. Recognized as Singapore’s ‘first impresario’, he played a pivotal role in shaping the local cultural landscape.

He founded the Singapore Arts Theatre in 1951 and Donald Moore Productions. To promote a stronger arts culture, he founded the Singapore First Night Club in 1957, which later became the Friends of the Arts. This group provided members with a 25% discount on concerts and plays by Donald Moore Productions. In 1963, he opened Donald Moore Galleries, an art and book store that sold artifacts and luxury lifestyle items, including works by local artists, and served as a venue for booking performance tickets. The gallery was initially at MacDonald House, then moved to Clemenceau Avenue, and later to Liat Towers.

By the early 1970s, Moore’s businesses were in decline, ultimately forcing the closure of all his enterprises. In November 1971, newspapers reported that almost $1 million in debt forced Moore to wind up six firms (The Strits Times 1971). Moore returned to the UK in 1976 and passed away in 2000 at the age of 76.