SEGAMAT: The Hungry Ghost Festival performance in Kampung Tengah New Village turned into a spectacle resembling a massive outdoor concert, drawing more than 10,000 people, including overseas fans.

The free-entry show did not only offer seats but also featured a rock zone and free distribution of 5,000 glow sticks, packing the venue to bursting point.

Kampung Tengah New Village has long held Hungry Ghost Festival rituals on the 14th to 16th day of the seventh month of the lunar calendar, accompanied by three nights of stage performances.

In recent years, the shows, originally meant to entertain wandering spirits where empty chairs on the front rows are reserved for the spirits, have become a highlight for the Segamat community.

This year the organizing committee for hungry ghost festival of the village invited Taiwanese singer Linda Lee E-Jun to perform on the third night.

To better understand Lee’s performance style, several committee members even traveled to Genting Highlands earlier this year to watch her concert.

Many of Lee’s fans in the rock zone had traveled from China, Singapore, and various Malaysian states, with overall attendance estimated at more than 10,000, according to the organizing committee.

According to Chinese beliefs, the spirits enjoy a month-long vacation in the human world when the gates of the underworld open.

It is an age-old tradition to have Chinese opera performances, puppet shows and kotai (stage shows) to entertain the community and wandering spirits during the hungry ghost festival to ensure a peaceful and prosperous year.