GEORGE TOWN – Arts, musical and cultural events should be permitted on the same day as joyous occasions, such as royal installation ceremonies, a local performer said.
Kuala Lumpur-based lawyer-turned-actor Chacko George Vadaketh, whose show, Chacko Vadaketh: Songs & Stories, was scheduled for 8.30pm tonight on the second day of the George Town Festival, told Scoop that his performance had been postponed to 12.01am tomorrow.
His show is one of several events affected by the installation ceremony of the 17th Yang di-Pertuan Agong Sultan Ibrahim today.
He said these events should be allowed to proceed after the official ceremonies.
Chacko empathises with the need to postpone or cancel performances in the event of the passing of a monarch or national leader.
“But this (installation ceremony) is a happy occasion. In other countries that have coronation ceremonies, there would be street parties and the atmosphere would be festive.
“But I don’t know why in today’s Malaysia, arts and music events are being cancelled,” he said.
He added that this was the first time he had learned of entertainment events held on the day of a coronation or installation ceremony being asked to be postponed, despite having witnessed several installation and coronation ceremonies in Malaysia held in past decades.
Chacko also argued that arts, musical and cultural performances should be allowed on coronation or installation days since royal families had traditionally been patrons of the arts and cultural scene in Malaysia for centuries.
“Therefore, it is fitting that on the day of the installation, which is a happy event, arts and music should take place once the ceremony is over. They should not coincide with the ceremony but follow it, creating a festive atmosphere for the nation,” he added.
Postponement causes difficulties for performers
He highlighted the challenges performers faced due to postponements, having made venue reservations, deposit payments, and booked musicians and crew months in advance. Such postponements are also inconvenient for festival visitors, especially those from overseas.
“As for the booking, I feel so bad for (digital ticketing platform) CloudJoi because thousands of tickets have been bought (by attendees) and they (CloudJoi) have to reschedule, (or) ask people whether they want refunds and cancel (their purchases).
“Most would have made other plans and can’t reschedule at very short notice. So I think that is unfortunate,” added Chacko.
Despite his performance being rescheduled to just after midnight today, Chacko expressed hope that people would still attend, although he noted that many older attendees had said they could not make it due to the late timing.
Yesterday, Penang Chief Minister Chow Kon Yeow stated at a press conference after the launch of the George Town Festival that the state government had received an official letter instructing all entertainment events on the coronation day to be postponed.
He said the state complied with the instructions, asking festival organisers to adjust by moving an entertainment event to yesterday and postponing some performances to later dates.
Scoop has reached out to the festival’s artistic director, Ling Tan, for comments. – July 20, 2024
