Following the passing of Her Majesty Queen Sirikit The Queen Mother, several festivals and concerts in the coming have confirmed they would be going ahead – albeit with adjustments made to their programming.
Her Majesty Queen Sirikit The Queen Mother passed away on 24 October, with Thailand entering a 30-day mourning period.
Thai prime minister Anutin Charnvirakul later clarified that while entertainment activities are encouraged to be “reduced” during the mourning period, the government has not called for an outright ban on festive events or concerts.
According to local news reports, Mr Anutin encouraged private sector organisers to exercise appropriateness during their events.
The fate of several high-profile shows – including T-Pop concerts and festivals – were left in limbo as the mourning period kicked off. Very quickly though, organisers clarified their plans, with some postponing to later dates.
On 25 October, concerts like DMD Music duo’s ZeeNuNew Crazy In Love concert at Bangkok’s Impact Arena took place as usual.
The Siam Halloween music festival, taking place in Siam Square, also carried on, with organisers Flex 104.5 and executives from LOVEiS Entertainment (the station’s parent company) paying their respects in a moment of silence during the festival.
The three-day festival, however, will not be taking place on 26 October. According to a statement by co-organisers PMCU (who manage the Siam Square area), business owners and event organisers should “refrain from activities that use noise or musical performances of any kind” during the mourning period.
Flex Connect says it will be cancelling the concert and Random Dance elements of the music festival, but states that other activities will carry on as planned. It also called on attendees to “dress appropriately” for the event.
Events taking place on the next weekend (1 and 2 November) appear to be going on, albeit with programme changes.
The Halloween-themed Enchanted Fest will proceed as planned on 31 October, but with changes made to “align with the current situation”. The festival will see the likes of BUS Because of you i shine, 4EVE, Jeff Satur and Tattoo Colour in its line-up.
According to organisers, the festival’s afterparty “will be cancelled for appropriateness and to maintain the overall tone of the event”.
They add: “(We) kindly ask all attendees to wear black-and-white attire when attending the event.”
Organisers for the Monster Music Festival on 1 and 2 November have not issued any statement on the event.
Concert ticket sales were also adjusted: tickets to the second night of BamBam’s Hometown concert were scheduled to go on sale on 25 October, but sales have been postponed to a later date to be announced.
Other events that have been impacted by the mourning period include:
– Chiang Mai Music Journey 8 music festival (24-26 October): concerts on 25 and 26 October cancelled.
– Getsunova’s The Grateful Sorrow fan-meeting (on 26 October): postponed
– MChoice boy group CIR*CRL’s first busking event (on 30 October): postponed
– Thailand Headlines Person of the Year Awards ceremony (on 3 November): postponed
– Maya TV Awards (on 29 October): taking place, but with programming adjustments
ChaPop extends its deepest condolences on the passing of Her Majesty Queen Sirikit The Queen Mother.
