KUALA LUMPUR: The creative industry has made every effort to adapt to the new norms to ensure they remain safe and their livelihood is not affected by the Covid-19 pandemic.
Previously, performing arts practitioners were used to having large crowds at their events and shows.
However, when the Movement Control Order (MCO) kicked in, things changed.
Now, things are beginning to look up for them again as they adjust to new practices.
Gangsapura co-founder Teuku Umar Ilany Teuku Iskandar said things would not be the same again for a while and as such, he had made the effort, and successfully adapted to new norms.
He said the number of students in classes was now limited — previously there were 10 students but now there were only six to seven students per class.
"Currently, we only open two classes. These classes will be conducted once a week at the Kuala Lumpur Performing Arts Centre (KLPAC).
"The students have to follow the standard operating procedures (SOPs) such as wear face masks, get the body temperatures checked before entering the class and submit the details through the MySejahtera app.
"Before the Covid-19 pendemic, we conducted three classes at KLPAC and two classes at the Malaysia Tourism Centre (MaTic) with seven to 10 students in one class," he said.
Gangsapura is a standalone contemporary Malay gamelan group which was established in 2016 with the aim to promote Malaysian culture and develop traditional arts.
Teuku Umar also said during the MCO, they made use of digital platforms by initiating live podcast shows called Petalaseni on YouTube to sustain the business and fulfil the demands of the people.
He said although they could not go back to the way things were before when their shows were performed 'live' in front of a large crowd, it was understandable as safety of the public was now a priority.
"At first, it was difficult but I realise that everyone is facing the same situation. We must adapt to the new norms as there is no other way to be safe."
To help these performing arts practitioners during the pandemic, Gangsapura received a grant of RM3,500 from the Create Now Funding Programme under the Cultural Economy Development Agency (CENDANA).
The Penjana plan for the creative industries is a set of recovery initiatives introduced for the creative industry, including the arts and culture Industries, under the government's Penjana short-term economic recovery plan, administered and managed by MyCreative Ventures and CENDANA and supervised by the Communications and Multimedia Ministry.
Meanwhile, Ian Francis Khoo, 23, vocalist and guitarist from a local band 'The Filters', said having to adapt to the new norms was difficult at first as they were used to having a large crowd at their gigs.
"We used to have big crowds attending and watching the live performance. Now, when we record a live stream, we have very few people in the studio.
"It was initially strange but now, we do not have problems with the new norms."
Khoo said he and his bandmates now rarely go out and even if they did, they would strictly abide by the SOPs.
He hoped there would be a decrease in the number of Covid-19 cases in the country by next year when they launch their new album.
Freelance graphic designer and artist Kua Chia Chi, 29, from Kedah, is coping well with the new norms, and trying her best to promote her drawings and photographs to the public.
"I am used to the new norms and because of them too, I have made some money through the sale of 'zine' (self-published work) containing drawings, texts and photographs to the public.
"At an arts exhibition that was held during the Recovery Movement Control Order, the organiser limited the number of visitors to the event to abide by the new norms," said Kua.
For more information, go to https://www.infosihat.gov.my/images/media_sihat/normabaharu/HTML/