4–6 March 2011
Lyric Theatre, HKAPA
"CLT is one of the best blends of Eastern and Western techniques that I have seen. In any language this is exciting theatre."
The Guardian
Rock melodies, pop rhythms, hipster outfits and kung fu fighting are stirred together, with a dash of Peking opera, in 108 Heroes to cook-up a new dimension in Chinese music theatre.
For seven centuries, the 108 heroes of The Water Margin have been cherished throughout China. Like Robin Hood and his Merry Men, they lived as outcasts in an unjust society and stood up against their oppressors and a corrupted government.
This collaboration between China, Hong Kong and Taiwan sees multi-talented actor, director Wu Hsing-kuo enlist novelist Chang Ta-chuen and rock star Wakin Chau. The 72-chapter classic novel is distilled into a two-hour joyride featuring countless actors, martial artists, acrobats and musicians who perform a dizzying array of physical and musical feats; their infectious energy and enthusiasm sweeps you away until you feel part of the adventure.
So rise up and watch in awe as Chinese literature’s most infamous gang of bandits, rogues and vagabonds rampage in Hong Kong.
Wu Hsing-kuo
Wu Hsing-Kuo founded the Contemporary Legend Theatre (CLT) in 1986 and is currently its Artistic Director. He helped pioneer the fusion of traditional Chinese Opera with Western canons subverting playgoers' assumptions and creating a new aesthetic in Eastern theatre.
Under Wu, CLT has performed in many prominent arenas and festivals including the Royal National Theater, UK; the Festival d'Avignon, France; the Asian Performing Arts Festival, Japan; and the Spoleto Festival, USA.
Alongside their traditional and modern Chinese repertoires, the CLT have adapted numerous western pieces: Shakespeare’s The Kingdom of Desire, War and Eternity, King Lear, and The Tempest; Samuel Beckett’s Waiting for Godot; and the Greek tragedies Medea, Oresteia.
Commissioned by the Hong Kong Arts Festival
| Original Author | Shih Nai-An | |
| Adapted by | Chang Ta-Chuen | |
| Directed & Acted by | Wu Hsing-kuo | |
| Music Composed by | Wakin Chau | |
| Performed by | College of Chinese Opera, Shanghai Theatre Academy | |
| Contemporary Legend Theatre |
