The Seventh Month of the Lunar Calendar is coming. In other words, the Hungry Ghost Festival is almost upon us, and it is getai season again.
For those unaware, getai is a Chinese way of describing “song stage” and usually involves a lot of performances like songs and dances to celebrate an occasion.
Many performers do songs and music from various dialects instead of only performing in Mandarin (the most common form of Chinese spoken and used in Singapore).
Since getai is a traditional form of performance requiring a lot of time and energy, it is a practice slowly being erased from our culture.
Unfortunately, the number of getais in Singapore is rapidly decreasing, reportedly below half that before COVID-19.
Here is what is happening to the getai scene.
The Number of Getai Performances Are Decreasing Compared to Pre-COVID-19
If you enjoy watching getai performances to celebrate the Hungry Ghost Festival or other celebratory events at temples, it may soon be hard to find a getai to watch.
According to 8world, who spoke to a getai organiser, the number of getais slated for the Seventh Month of the Lunar Calendar this month is a measly half the number of getais booked pre-COVID-19.
There could be over 300 getai shows in pre-COVID-19, but the forecast for this year is only 100 shows.
However, there was a trend of more officers organising mini-getai celebrations at their workplaces.
While it is easy to blame the terrible COVID-19 pandemic for everything, the reason for a decline in the local getai scene may not be attributable to this terrible pandemic.
According to the getai organisers, many getai troops decided to “close shop” for good last year after performing for the final time.
The increasing costs of running a getai show were a factor in some of these troops’ decisions to close for good.
Mr Chen Ya Liang (Hanyu pinyin) of the entertainment scene spoke to 8world and shared that he used to perform at over ten getai shows before the pandemic.
However, he only booked a sad two shows this year.
He shared that there were budget constraints from those who used to host getai shows as there was no money coming in, which allowed them to host the shows.
Sometimes, the smaller scale of celebrations also meant that getai performances were cut out of the programme list.
The smaller scale performances and celebrations can be seen in the reduced tables opened at some festivals.
There used to be over 100 tables for some celebrations, but now, a banquet may only have 50 or 60 tables.