Posted on 06 Sep 2009
No longer just a Chinese tradition, getais are a reflection of S'pore's cultural diversity
Getais, usually held during the Hungry Ghost Festival, are no longer restricted to the Chinese-speaking population. People of different cultures can now be seen watching and also performing at getai shows, says STOMPer Baritone.
In an email, STOMPer Baritone says:
"These pictures were taken at a getai show at Penjuru Close. An estimated crowd of 2 000 came to watch the show.
"About half the audience were foreign workers who live in the adjoining dormitories.
"Over the years, getai has evolved to what it is today: a good racial and cultural mix of our cosmopolitan society.
"Now the Taiwanese singers can sing in Hokkien, Mandarin and English and the Malay singers can sing Hokkien and Cantonese numbers.
"One Taiwanese singer was dressed as a 'hermaphrodite' singer for when she faced the audience with her right shoulder she appeared as a Cinderella with a long gown and if she faced the audience with her left shoulder, you can see only a male singer that looked like a minstrel. What was amazing is that she could sing with both 'male' and 'female' voices depending on the song.
"One singer, after singing a couple of Hokkien songs, suddenly switched to the song 'Beautiful Sunday' followed by a Beatles number.
"One Malay singer sang 'Shanghai tan' with gusto followed by a loud applause from the Chinese audience."
Click on thumbnails for larger image
Keywords: getai , cultural diversity
No longer just a Chinese tradition, getais are a reflection of S'pore's cultural diversity
Getais, usually held during the Hungry Ghost Festival, are no longer restricted to the Chinese-speaking population. People of different cultures can now be seen watching and also performing at getai shows, says STOMPer Baritone.
In an email, STOMPer Baritone says:
"These pictures were taken at a getai show at Penjuru Close. An estimated crowd of 2 000 came to watch the show.
"About half the audience were foreign workers who live in the adjoining dormitories.
"Over the years, getai has evolved to what it is today: a good racial and cultural mix of our cosmopolitan society.
"Now the Taiwanese singers can sing in Hokkien, Mandarin and English and the Malay singers can sing Hokkien and Cantonese numbers.
"One Taiwanese singer was dressed as a 'hermaphrodite' singer for when she faced the audience with her right shoulder she appeared as a Cinderella with a long gown and if she faced the audience with her left shoulder, you can see only a male singer that looked like a minstrel. What was amazing is that she could sing with both 'male' and 'female' voices depending on the song.
"One singer, after singing a couple of Hokkien songs, suddenly switched to the song 'Beautiful Sunday' followed by a Beatles number.
"One Malay singer sang 'Shanghai tan' with gusto followed by a loud applause from the Chinese audience."
Click on thumbnails for larger image
Keywords: getai , cultural diversity
