Hong Kong Festival & Events

FESTIVALS

Celebrating its 35th anniversary with a dazzling array of the performing arts from all over the world, the Hong Kong Arts Festival serves up a month-long cultural feast to cover all tastes. Here is a brief rundown of the diverse entertainment on offer in the Event's Capital of Asia.


OPERA

Welsh National Opera: This renowned troupe will present Puccini's best-loved opera, La bohéme in a classic production. (16-19 March)


CHINESE OPERA

Jiangsu Province Kunqu Opera: A unique revival of The Peach Blossom Fan (1699), an epic Ming Dynasty drama regarded as one of the greatest Chinese opera classics. (24-25 February)

Chinese opera together with Greece tragic-comedy and Indian Sanskrit Opera are the three oldest dramatic art forms in the world. During the Tang Dynasty (618 – 907), the Emperor Taizong established an opera school with the poetic name Liyuan (Pear Garden). From that time on, performers of Chinese opera were referred to as 'disciples of the pear garden'. Since the Yuan Dynasty (1271 - 1368) Chinese opera has been encouraged by court officials and emperors and has become a traditional art form. During the Qing Dynasty (1644 - 1911), Chinese opera became fashionable among ordinary people. Performances were watched in tearooms, restaurants, and even around makeshift stages.

Chinese opera evolved from folk songs, dances, talking, antimasque, and especially distinctive dialectical music. Gradually it combined music, art and literature into one performance on the stage. Accompanied by traditional musical instruments like the Erhu, the gong, and the lute, actors present unique melodies - which may sound strange to foreigners - as well as dialogues which are beautifully written and of high literary value. These dialogs also promoted the development of distinct literary styles, such as Zaju in the Yuan Dynasty. For Chinese, especially older folks, to listen to this kind of opera is a real pleasure.

What appeals to foreigners most might be the different styles of facial make-up, which is one of the highlights of Chinese opera and requires distinctive techniques of painting. Exaggerated designs are painted on each performer's face to symbolize a character's personality, role, and fate. This technique may have originated from ancient religions and dance. Audiences who are familiar with opera can know the story by observing the facial painting as well as the costumes. Generally, a red face represents loyalty and bravery; a black face, valor; yellow and white faces, duplicity; and golden and silver faces, mystery.

Besides color, lines also function as symbols. For example, a figure can be painted either all white on his face, or just around the nose. The larger the white area painted, the more viperous the role.

Another technique that fascinates people is the marvelous acrobatics. Players can make fire spray out of their mouths when they act as spirits, or can gallop while squatting to act as a dwarf. This reflects a saying among actors: 'One minute's performance on the stage takes ten years' practice behind the scenes.'

Over the past 800 years, Chinese opera has evolved into many different regional varieties based on local traits and accents. Today, there are over 300 dazzling regional opera styles. Kun opera, which originated around Jiangsu Province, is a typical ancient opera style and features gentleness and clearness. This enabled it to be ranked among the World Oral and Intangible Heritages. Qinqiang opera from Shaanxi, known for its loudness and wildness, and Yu opera, Yue opera, and Huangmei Opera are all very enjoyable. Beijing Opera , the best-known Chinese opera style, was formed from the mingling of these regional styles.


MUSIC

Yuri Simonov and the Moscow Philharmonic Orchestra: Launching the festival, this celebrated orchestra will perform some of the best Russian classics. (27 February - 1 March)

Yuri Simonov and the Moscow Philharmonic Orchestra This first ever visit to Hong Kong by the Moscow Philharmonic Orchestra with its Music Director Yuri Simonov, opens the 35th Hong Kong Arts Festival. The Orchestra brings three nights of the best Russian classics selected from its most celebrated repertoire. The Orchestra will be joined by three outstanding soloists: Russian pianist Konstantin Lifschitz and violinist Boris Belkin, as well as the young Chinese pianist Shen Wenyu.

Building on Russia's famous symphonic traditions, the Moscow Philharmonic Orchestra plays with
great precision yet always from the heart, and their indisputably Russian sound is alive and richly textured, with singing strings and bright winds.

Founded in 1951, the Orchestra has performed with all the top conductors including Igor Stravinsky, Lorin Maazel, Zubin Mehta and Krzysztof Penderecki, who have all left an indelible mark on its history of success. Guest soloists such as Isaac Stern, Yehudi Menuhin, Arthur Rubinstein and Maurizio Pollini, have praised highly the Orchestra's artistic unity and inspiring performance.

During his previous visits to Hong Kong, Yuri Simonov has captured the hearts of Hong Kong audiences with his "precise, exciting and endlessly dynamic" (South China Morning Post) conducting style. Before his appointment as Music Director of the Moscow Philharmonic Orchestra in 1998, Simonov had been the longest serving Chief Conductor in the history of the Bolshoi Opera. He made his debut in the West at the Royal Opera House Covent Garden in 1982. Since then, he has worked with many renowned orchestras, such as the Boston Symphony Orchestra, the NHK Symphony Orchestra, the London Symphony Orchestra and the Hong Kong Philharmonic Orchestra.


JAZZ

Chucho Valdés Quartet: A towering music legend of our times, the virtuoso pianist dazzles with Afro-Cuban sounds. (16-17 March)

Julia Migenes: The fiery Diva casts off her opera mantle to sing her favourite songs in her new production, Alter Ego. (11-12 March)



WORLD MUSIC

Soweto Gospel Choir: This dynamic 26-member vocal sensation from South Africa has won rave reviews wherever they perform. (23-24 March)



DANCE AND CLASSICAL MUSIC

Leipzig Ballet, with the Gewandhaus Orchestra and chorus and soloists of the Leipzig Opera: Choreographer Uwe Scholz presents The Great Mass, a monumental production featuring the music of Mozart. (8-10 March)


DANCE

Sylvie Guillem and Akram Khan: The prima ballerina and her dancer/choreographer partner perform Sacred Monsters, his unique blend of Indian classical dance and contemporary dance. (2-3 March)

Tango Buenos Aires: Experience the passionate dancing, music and songs with this top tango ensemble from Argentina. (21-25 March)

The True Tango Experience – Seriously Sexy!

There's no need to take a pilgrimage to Buenos Aires to bring your dreams of tango to life. A team of top tango dancers and musicians from Argentina are going to turn the Cultural Centre into a milonga (Argentinean dance club), to bring the true tango spirit to Hong Kong. Experience the passionate dancing, music and songs to set your heart and body aflame!

In a seductively sensual and invigorating programme, the performers pay their respects to traditional tango while infusing it with the pulse of modern cosmopolitan Buenos Aires. Their performances synthesize traditional, intimate tango salón – the style danced in the milongas – with a dramatic contemporary tango showcase.

The award winning dance company No Bailarás demonstrates the reason for its acclaim with stylish performances, dynamic characters and original choreography. Their innovative interpretations bring together a theatrical atmosphere filled with ironic humour that breaks many of the clichés of stage performance tango.

No Bailarás's audacious dancing style is complemented by two internationally celebrated star couples: Roberto Herrera with Tamara Bisceglia and Esteban Moreno with Claudia Códega, who are among the best tango couples today. Herrera's amazing technique and Bisceglia's theatrical expressiveness give birth to a dance that explores tango's dramatic qualities and the erotic sensuality of the embrace. Esteban Moreno and Claudia Códega are highly respected in Europe as teachers, choreographers and tango dancers. The couple have developed an elegant dance style, together with a mise en scène that echoes deep rooted traditions while emphasizing more contemporary dance styles.

This sensational dancing is accompanied by Orchestra El Arranque. The passionate lyricism of these suave musicians has earned them an international reputation following concerts at New York's Lincoln Center and the Théâtre National de Chaillot, Paris. They perform their own original compositions and enhance classical works with innovative musical arrangements.

Master musician Raúl Garello will set the tone by serenading the audience for a genuine tango experience. This distinctive composer and musician expresses the new musical sounds of his city with symphonic influences, never forgetting the essential keys of tango.

Come early to enjoy a brief tango demonstration in the foyer!

From international award-winning movies to avant-garde indies, this 16-day extravaganza in March and April screens nearly 300 films from around the world. It is a premier cultural event that never fails to entertain. Popular categories include Hong Kong Panorama and a retrospective from the Hong Kong Film Archive. For more information about this event, please visit their website.

Be sure to visit our interactive calendar for information on the great events taking place in Hong Kong.

Festival Canada raises the profile of the dynamic Canadian community as an innovative and culturally diverse entity. There's a host of events and Canada D'eh!, an annual Chamber street party held in the streets of Lan Kwai Fong. For details, please visit www.cancham.org

For more information on the great events taking place in Hong Kong please visit our interactive calendar.

Le French May is bringing to Hong Kong an array of top-notch French artistes, and cutting edge French productions covering dance, music, theatre and the visual arts. It's a stunning two months-long feast for the senses, a celebration of the best of French culture and of course French food and wine tasting. For details, please visit their website at www.frenchmay.com.

Quality & Lifestyle is the largest Italian extravaganza in the region that focuses on promoting Italian industries, arts, culture and its general lifestyle to the Hong Kong business and local community. For details, please visit the website at: www.icc.org.hk.

Remember to check out our interactive calendar for more exciting events. or http://www.discoverhongkong.com/

Experience the passion and the colour of Spain as the Spanish Chamber of Commerce presents its annual Spain in Hong Kong 2006 festival from 5 - 22 October.

Art exhibitions, magnificent flamenco performances, gastronomy and cooking demonstrations, fashion shows, wine tastings and many other events will transport you to the flavour and vitality of Spain.

To find out more about Spain in Hong Kong 2006, please visit the chamber’s website: www.spanish-chamber.com.hk