Kratae Rsiam reveals the behind-the-scenes story of the SEA Games 2025 closing show, finding out only one week in advance and paying hundreds of thousands of baht out of her own pocket.
On 26 Dec 2025 GMT+7, following the SEA Games 2025 (the 33rd SEA Games), the official closing ceremony was held on Saturday, 20 Dec at Rajamangala National Stadium, featuring two popular Thai artists, Tah U Pitaya and Kratae, adding color to the event.
After the event, Kratae shared, “We did our very best. We rehearsed for two days, practicing until 4 a.m., despite many challenges and a limited show. We couldn’t make any adjustments or additions due to various reasons, multiple agencies, and the very limited time. I hope everyone supports both Tah U and our team a lot.”
Recently, Kratae revealed more details on the program “Chae” on GMM25. She was shocked to learn she was tasked with preparing the closing show only one week in advance, with just two days of rehearsal. Moreover, on the actual rehearsal day at Rajamangala Stadium, she had only 10 minutes to arrange formations on the field and had to cancel previously accepted engagements on the day of the closing ceremony.
To ensure the show was impressive, Kratae decided to pay all expenses herself, including costumes costing several hundred thousand baht and hiring dancers who are professional instructors. She explained, “I don’t mind spending money, but I cannot afford to lose face.” She wanted to deliver the best show for the country's reputation, even though it was compared to the more spectacular Malaysian show.
Kratae admitted she wanted to add many more impressive elements to the show and was willing to pay out of pocket, but the organizers did not allow it since preparations had already been made. Otherwise, many adjustments would have been necessary.
The combined budget for the SEA Games 2025 opening and closing ceremonies was 118,084,900 baht, divided into 87,967,532 baht for the opening and 30,117,368 baht for the closing, broken down into five categories as follows.
Opening ceremony budget: 87,967,532 baht.
1. Venue preparation: 51,895,532 baht.
2. Services and facilitation: 878,000 baht.
3. Ceremony and performance activities for the opening: 32,110,000 baht.
4. Event personnel: 691,000 baht.
5. Other management expenses: 1,365,000 baht.
Host provinces’ participation in the opening ceremony:
• Chonburi Province: 514,000 baht.
• Songkhla Province: 514,000 baht.
Songkhla Province may have changes due to flooding in several southern provinces, causing 10 sports to be relocated to Bangkok and Chonburi from originally planned venues in Songkhla.
Meanwhile, the closing ceremony budget totaled 30,117,368 baht.
1. Venue preparation: 24,416,868 baht.
2. Services and facilitation: 642,000 baht.
3. Ceremony and performance activities for the closing: 4,207,000 baht.
4. Event personnel: 666,500 baht.
5. Other management expenses: 185,000 baht.