Live stream of River Hongbao performance draws 45,000 viewers
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Entry to River Hongbao is free but those intending to turn up at the site in Gardens by the Bay have to book a time slot online. Up to 2,000 visitors are allowed per time slot, which is 90 minutes or two hours. They will be assigned to one of three entrances at the site.
ST PHOTO: TIMOTHY DAVID
Some 45,000 people watched the live stream of River Hongbao's opening performance last Wednesday.
Held at Gardens by the Bay this year, the event drew a much larger audience than previous editions, with live-streaming overcoming the limitations from safe management measures amid the Covid-19 pandemic.
Yesterday, organising committee chairman Tan Aik Hock said: "Going online has helped us to reach out to far more people than with a traditional stage and audience setting, which would seat a maximum of a few hundred people."
Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong was guest of honour and among those at the venue for the opening ceremony.
Last year, about 1,200 people were in the audience for River Hongbao's opening ceremony at The Float@Marina Bay.
This year's festival will run until tomorrow, with pre-recorded getai performances last night and tonight.
Getai stars Wang Lei and Lin Ruping featured in last night's performance.
Only a fraction of the usual crowds are at River Hongbao this year, though traffic to the festival website has soared.
Between last Wednesday and Saturday, 23,000 people turned up at the Gardens by the Bay site.
Last year, 520,000 people visited in the first four days of the festival.
"The smaller numbers are in the interests of safety, and (this) is due to strict measures to control crowds to 2,000 or less within stipulated time slots," said the River Hongbao organising committee.
Entry is free, but tickets are required as part of crowd control measures.
Up to 2,000 visitors are allowed per time slot, which is 90 minutes or two hours.
Up to four people can be registered per booking.
Visitors have to book time slots online and will be assigned to one of three entrances at the site.
River Hongbao is organised by the Singapore Federation of Chinese Clan Associations, Singapore Chinese Chamber of Commerce and Industry, Singapore Press Holdings' Chinese Media Group, Singapore Tourism Board and People's Association.