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Getai singers Leon Lim, Wang Lei and Liu Ling Ling perform a getai show at a studio in Singapore. The Covid-19 pandemic has forced getais, or free concerts that are traditionally staged outdoors for the living and the dead during the Hungry Ghost Festival, to go virtual. Photo: Reuters

Coronavirus pandemic forces Singapore’s getai concerts for the dead to go online

  • Getai shows are mainly held during the Hungry Ghost Festival in the seventh month of the lunar calendar, when spirits of the dead are believed to return
  • Because of the Covid-19 pandemic, the popular form of entertainment in Southeast Asia is now being broadcast over the internet
Singapore
The studio lights dim, the band begins to strum, and it’s showtime for a Singapore getai concert – a popular form of entertainment in Southeast Asia that features songs, skits and over-the-top costumes to celebrate the dead.
Because of the coronavirus pandemic, instead of being watched by a live audience of thousands, the performance is taking place in a studio and broadcast over the internet.

The live-stream is a lifeline for performers like Febe Huang, who earns her living staging getai with her husband across the region.

Crew members monitor the live streaming of a getai show on social media platforms at a studio in Singapore. Photo: Reuters

“When this pandemic hit, there were two or three months where we just didn’t have any income at all,” she said. “We started selling things online so we had a little bit of a salary. And now this live-streamed getai has started.”

Getai shows are mainly held during the Hungry Ghost Festival in the seventh month of the lunar calendar, when spirits of the dead are believed to return to wander the Earth.

Performers say without the thrill of a live crowd, it’s not quite the same.

“Every year it’s the same feeling – when the Hungry Ghost Festival comes, (everyone) is very happy. But this year just feels a bit empty. There’s no particular feeling,” said Sam Loo, a veteran getai performer with 37 years of experience.

Still, the online performances have proven hugely popular, with some attracting audiences of hundreds of thousands.

Getai veteran Wang Lei says a few words to his fans online before a live streaming getai show. Photo: Reuters

Aaron Tan, founder of a company that produces getai concerts, said the hope is that new fans drawn to the online performances will mean bigger audiences for live shows when they reopen.

Ahead of a performance in a recording studio last weekend, caretakers from temples brought in statues of deities.

Singapore to ease coronavirus restrictions, allowing events with 250 people

There were food offerings for the gods, with cans of Guinness beers and a bottle of Martell Cordon Bleu cognac.

Brightly dressed performers cracked jokes and sang songs in Hokkien, the main dialect of Southeast Asia’s Chinese diaspora.

Temple members, relatives and friends of getai singers watch a live streaming getai show. Photo: Reuters
The live-streamed getai have kept performers in the spotlight at a time when many other entertainment events are cancelled.

“So we treasure, we really cherish this opportunity,” said veteran getai performer and comedian Liu Ling Ling.

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