Hong Kong Arts Festival
The Hong Kong Arts Festival (香港藝術節) (HKAF), founded in 1973, is an annual series of cultural programmes in Hong Kong, with many performances from other parts of the world.
Held every February/March, HKAF has become an important focus of Hong Kong cultural life and promoter of the performing arts. Programme highlights are announced in August each year, with full line up and advance booking from October to December.
Genres seen and heard at the Hong Kong Arts Festival include classical music, Chinese music, world music, Western opera, Chinese opera, drama and dance. HKAF presented top international artists and ensembles, such as Cecilia Bartoli, Jose Carreras, Yo-Yo Ma, Philip Glass, Kurt Masur, Riccardo Chailly, Mikhail Baryshnikov, Sylvie Guillem, Kevin Spacey, Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra, Mariinsky Theatre, Bavarian State Opera, New York City Ballet, Paris Opera Ballet, Tanztheater Wuppertal Pina Bausch, Cloud Gate Dance Theatre, Zingaro, Royal Shakespeare Company, Moscow Art Theatre, and Beijing People's Art Theatre.
The Hong Kong Arts Festival also commissions, produces and publishes new works in theatre, chamber opera and contemporary dance by Hong Kong's creative talents and emerging artists, many with successful subsequent runs in Hong Kong and overseas. The 2014 festival featured FILTH by Jingan Young, the first English language play ever commissioned by the festival.[1]
HKAF invests in arts education for young people through various projects. The "HKAF Young Friends" has reached about 700,000 secondary and tertiary school students since 1992.[2] Close to 9,000 half-price student tickets are issued each year.
Over 100 Festival PLUS activities are organised in community locations each year to enhance the engagement between artists and audiences. These include lecture demonstrations, masterclasses, workshops, symposia, backstage visits, exhibitions, meet-the-artist sessions, and guided tours.[3]
The Hong Kong Arts Festival Society Limited is a non-profit organisation, with about 30% of annual revenue from government funding, around 40% from the box office, and the remaining 30% from sponsorships and donations from corporations, individuals, and charitable foundations.[4][5]
List of committee members (2015/2016)
Patron
The Chief Executive The Hon C Y Leung, GBM, GBS, JP
Honorary Life President
Sir Run Run Shaw, CBE (1972-2014)
Executive Committee
Mr. Victor Cha (Chairman)
Mr. James Riley (Vice Chairman)
Mr. William Li (Honorary Treasurer)
Mr. Anthony Lau
Mrs. Yu-san Leong
The Hon Martin Liao, SBS JP
Ms. Nikki Ng
The Hon Mr Justice Robert Ribeiro
Mr. Joseph Yam, GBM JP
Professor Gabriel Leung, GBS JP
Past and Current Chairmen and Directors
| Year | Festival | Chairman | Executive Director |
| 1973 | 1st HKAF | Sir Run Run Shaw CBE | |
| 1974 | 2nd HKAF | ||
| 1975 | 3rd HKAF | ||
| 1976 | 4th HKAF | ||
| 1977 | 5th HKAF | ||
| 1978 | 6th HKAF | ||
| 1979 | 7th HKAF | ||
| 1980 | 8th HKAF | Mr. Keith Statham
史迪敦先生 | |
| 1981 | 9th HKAF | ||
| 1982 | 10th HKAF | ||
| 1983 | 11th HKAF | ||
| 1984 | 12th HKAF | ||
| 1985 | 13th HKAF | ||
| 1986 | 14th HKAF | ||
| 1987 | 15th HKAF | ||
| 1988 | 16th HKAF | Mr. Tseng Sun Man
鄭新文先生 | |
| 1989 | 17th HKAF | ||
| 1990 | 18th HKAF | The Hon Martin Barrow OBE JP
鮑磊先生 | |
| 1991 | 19th HKAF | ||
| 1992 | 20th HKAF | ||
| 1993 | 21st HKAF | ||
| 1994 | 22nd HKAF | ||
| 1995 | 23rd HKAF | Mr. Kau Ng
吳球先生 | |
| 1996 | 24th HKAF | ||
| 1997 | 25th HKAF | ||
| 1998 | 26th HKAF | ||
| 1999 | 27th HKAF | ||
| 2000 | 28th HKAF | ||
| 2001 | 29th HKAF | ||
| 2002 | 30th HKAF | Mrs Mona Leung SBS BBS MBE JP
梁紹榮夫人 | |
| 2003 | 31st HKAF | Mr. Douglas Gautier
高德禮先生 | |
| 2004 | 32nd HKAF | Mr Charles Y K Lee GBM GBS JP
李業廣先生 | |
| 2005 | 33rd HKAF | ||
| 2006 | 34th HKAF | ||
| 2007 | 35th HKAF | Ms. Tisa Ho
何嘉坤女士 | |
| 2008 | 36th HKAF | ||
| 2009 | 37th HKAF | ||
| 2010 | 38th HKAF | ||
| 2011 | 39th HKAF | ||
| 2012 | 40th HKAF | ||
| 2013 | 41st HKAF | ||
| 2014 | 42nd HKAF | The Hon Ronald Arculli GBM CVO GBS OBE JP | |
| 2015 | 43rd HKAF | ||
| 2016 | 44th HKAF | Mr. Victor Cha
查懋成先生 |
Past Festival Programmes (incomplete)
| Year | Programme Highlights
Opening Ceremony |
Programme Highlights
Closing Ceremony |
| 1996 | Julio Bocca & Ballet Argentino | |
| 1997 | Tan Dun Marco Polo | Montreal Symphony Orchestra |
| 1998 | Richard Strauss Salome | Compania Nacional de Danza |
| 1999 | Cantonese Opera – An All-Star Night | Hamburg Ballet |
| 2000 | China National Symphony Orchestra | Birmingham Royal Ballet
Edward II |
| 2001 | Rossini’s La Cenerentola | National Ballet of China
Raise the Red Lantern |
| 2002 | Bolshoi Theatre
Boris Godunov |
National Ballet of China
Raise the Red Lantern |
| 2003 | Stuttgart Opera
The Abduction from the Seraglio |
Hamburg Ballet
Nijinsky |
| 2004 | Komische Oper Berlin
The Merry Widow |
London Symphony Orchestra
under Gennadi Rozhdestvensky |
| 2005 | Polish National Opera
Otello Conductor: Jacek Kaspszyk Director: Mariusz Trelinski Tenor: Richard Decker Tenor: Krzysztof Bednarek |
Ballet Nacional de Espana
Director: Jose Antonio |
| 2006 | Michael Tilson Thomas and San Francisco Symphony
Soloist: Lynn Harrell |
Semper Opera Dresden and Opera Nuremberg
Mozart’s Don Giovanni Conductor: Howard Arman Director: Willy Decker |
| 2007 | Yuri Simonov and the Moscow Philharmonic Orchestra
Soloist: Konstantin Lifschitz Soloist: Boris Belkin Soloist: Shen Wenyu |
Tango Buenos Aires |
| 2008 | Stuttgart Ballet
Choreographer: John Cranko |
Vladimie Jurowski and the London Philharmonic Orchestra
Soloist: Nikolaj Znaider Soloist: Jean-Yves Thibaudet |
| 2009 | Bernard Haitink and the Chicago Symphony Orchestra | Lisa Ono A celebration of 50 years of Bossa Nova |
| 2010 | Cantonese Opera Treasures | Valery Gergiev and the Mariinsky Orchestra |
| 2011 | Cecilia Bartoli | Lost Tango Ute Lemper and the Piazzolla Sextet |
| 2012 | The Hamburg Ballet John Neumeier
Third Symphony of Gustav Mahler |
Bavarian Radio Symphony Orchestra - Daniel Harding |
| 2013 | American Ballet Theatre
Dance Gala AD: Kevin McKenzie Romeo and Juliet AD: Kevin McKenzie Choreography: Sir Kenneth MacMillan |
Teatro Di San Carlo
Viva Verdi Conductor: Michele Mariotti Choral Director: Salvatore Caputo |
| 2014 | Guerzenich Orchestra Cologne | Savonlinna Opera Festival Gala Concert |
| 2015 | Christian Thielemann & the Staatskapelle Dresden | The Bolshoi Ballet - Jewels |
| 2016 | Compagnia Finzi Pasca - La Verità (The Truth) | The Mikhailovsky Ballet - The Sleeping Beauty |
New works and recent tours
The HKAF is very active at promoting and engaging homegrown creative talents and emerging artists through commissioning producing and publishing new works in theatre, chamber opera and contemporary dance. Some of these productions go on to successful subsequent runs in Hong Kong and overseas.
In 2008, the HKAF commissioned and produced the production, Titus Andronicus by William Shakespeare for the 36th HKAF as part of its New Works series, and was later featured in a second run in the 40th HKAF in 2012 before participating in Globe to Globe, a World Shakespeare Festival at the Globe Theatre in London in which 37 of Shakespeare’s plays were performed in different languages. This was the first Cantonese production to be performed at the Globe.[6]
The HKAF in 2014 featured FILTH by Jingan Young, the first English language play ever commissioned by the festival.[7]
In 2013, the 41st HKAF commissioned the New Stage Series, Heart of Coral, a chamber opera about the life of Xiao Hong, one of the most celebrated female Chinese writers. The opera production was later featured in Taiwan at "Hong Kong Week 2014 @ Taipei" as part of a cultural exchange organized by the Hong Kong-Taiwan Cultural Co-operation Committee.[8]
The Crowd, another HKAF commissioned production which is written by Shanghai-based writer Yu Rongjun and directed by Hong Kong theater director, Tang Wai-kit for the HKAF in 2015 was also performed in Shanghai in April 2015.[9]
Co-commissioned by the HKAF and the Shakespeare’s Globe, renowned Hong Kong theatre director Tang Shu-wing premiered his Cantonese production of Macbeth at the Globe Theatre in London in August 2015, 4 years after the debut of his production of Titus Andronicus as part of the Globe to Globe initiative.[10][11] Macbeth was then staged at the 44th HKAF.
Awards, Achievements and Contributions
| Year | Programme | Awards | |
| 2005 | 《法吻》 | 第十五屆香港舞台劇獎
最佳劇本 莊梅岩 最佳男主角(悲劇/正劇) 李鎮洲 十大最受歡迎劇目 |
15th HONG KONG DRAMA AWARDS
Best Screenplay 莊梅岩 Best Actor (Tragedy / drama) 李鎮洲 Top ten most popular repertoire |
| 2009 | 《泰特斯》Titus Andronicus | 第十八屆香港舞台劇獎
最佳舞台設計 陳志權 最佳燈光設計 張國永 十大最受歡迎劇目 |
18th HONG KONG DRAMA AWARDS
Best stage design 陳志權 Best Lighting Design 張國永 Top ten most popular repertoire |
| 2010 | 《聖荷西謀殺案》Murder in San José | 第十九屆香港舞台劇獎
最佳導演(悲劇/正劇) 李鎮洲 最佳劇本 莊梅岩 最佳女主角(悲劇/正劇) 劉雅麗 十大最受歡迎製作 |
19th HONG KONG DRAMA AWARDS
Best Director 李鎮洲 Best Screenplay 莊梅岩 Best Actress (tragedy / drama) 劉雅麗 Top ten most popular repertoire |
| 2011 | 《香港式離婚》The Truth About Lying | 第二十屆香港舞台劇獎
最佳整體演出 最佳劇本 黃詠詩 最佳女主角(悲劇/正劇) 黃慧慈 十大最受歡迎製作 [12] |
20th HONG KONG DRAMA AWARDS
Best Overall Performance Best Screenplay 黃詠詩 Best Actress (tragedy / drama) 黃慧慈 Top ten most popular repertoire Timeout Best Production 2010 [12] |
| 2012 | 《重回凡間的凡人》An Ordinary Man | 第二十一屆香港舞台劇獎
最佳女配角(悲劇/正劇) 何英瓊 |
21st HONG KONG DRAMA AWARDS
Best Supporting Actress (tragedy / drama) 何英瓊 |
| 2013 | 《野豬》The Wild Boar | 第二十二屆香港舞台劇獎
十大最受歡迎製作最佳舞台設計 曾文通 |
22nd HONG KONG DRAMA AWARDS
Top ten most popular repertoire Best stage design 曾文通 |
| 2014 | 《爆‧蛹》Blast | 第二十三屆香港舞台劇獎
十大最受歡迎製作 |
23rd HONG KONG DRAMA AWARDS
Top ten most popular repertoire |
Recent Publications
| Year | Publication | |
| 2009 | 《黑天鵝》
《聖荷西謀殺案》 |
Black Swan
Murder in San José |
| 2010 | 《香港式離婚》
《情話紫釵》 |
The Truth About Lying
The Liaisons |
| 2011 | 《重回凡間的凡人》
《矯情/回收旖旎時光》 |
An Ordinary Man
Pretense / Recycling Times |
| 2012 | 《愛之初體驗》
《野豬》 《示範單位》 |
Journey to Home
The Wild Boar Show Flat |
| 2013 | 《屠龍記》
《蕭紅》 《爆‧蛹》 |
Smear
Heart of Coral Blast |
| 2014 | 《森林海中的紅樓》
《末族》 |
Red Chamber in the Concrete Forest
FILTH |
| 2015 | 《金蘭姊妹》
《大同》 《烏合之眾》 |
The Amahs
Datong The Crowd |
| 2016 | 《論語》 | Chinese Lesson |
 |
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References
- ↑ Lok, Evelyn (16 January 2014). "Jingan Young". HK Magazine. Retrieved 13 January 2015.
- ↑ Young Friends of the Hong Kong Arts Festival website
- ↑ Festival PLUS website
- ↑ About Us, Hong Kong Arts Festival
- ↑ Hong Kong Arts Festival promises stellar line-up of performances SCMP, 14 October 2014
- ↑ "Titus Andronicus". TANG SHU-WING THEATRE STUDIO (in Chinese). Retrieved 2016-04-20.
- ↑ "Jingan Young". HK Magazine. Retrieved 2016-04-20.
- ↑ ""Hong Kong Week 2014 @ Taipei" to show the essence of Hong Kong culture (with photos)". www.info.gov.hk. Retrieved 2016-04-20.
- ↑ "Crowd work - Global Times". www.globaltimes.cn. Retrieved 2016-04-20.
- ↑ "Chinese productions of Shakespeare return to the Globe in London". South China Morning Post. Retrieved 2016-04-20.
- ↑ "Macbeth performed in Cantonese by Tang Shu-wing Theatre Studio, Hong Kong / Shakespeare's Globe". www.shakespearesglobe.com. Retrieved 2016-04-20.
- 1 2 "Best of 2010: Best Hong Kong Stage Production". www.timeout.com.hk. Retrieved 2016-04-20.
External links
- Official HKAF site
- The 38th Hong Kong Arts Festival 2010
- The 39th Hong Kong Arts Festival 2011 – Events list