The 51st Hong Kong Arts Festival officially concluded today

More than 1,700 outstanding international and local artists

performed in 111 performances and related events

(Hong Kong, 18 March 2023)

The 51st Hong Kong Arts Festival (HKAF) celebrated its official finale today (18 March) with a performance by the Bamberg Symphony conducted by Jakub Hrůša. The post-performance ceremony was held at the Hong Kong Cultural Centre, with Mr Chan Kwok-ki, Chief Secretary for Administration of the Government of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region; Mr Victor Cha, Chairman of the Hong Kong Arts Festival; Mr Kevin Yeung Yun-hung, Secretary for Culture, Sports and Tourism; Mr Vincent Liu Ming-kwong, Director of Leisure and Cultural Services; Dr Liu Yagan, Chairman-Designate of ICBC (Asia); Dr Eric Li Ka-cheung, Deputy Chairman of The Hong Kong Jockey Club; and Ms Flora Yu, Executive Director of the Hong Kong Arts Festival, officiating at the event. The Festival Finale performance was exclusively sponsored by ICBC (Asia).

The 51st Hong Kong Arts Festival presented 111 performances, where works featured included nine world premieres and six Asian premieres, as well as more than 200 free events at HKartsFestival@TaiKwun, along with approximately 300 Festival PLUS and education activities, including three exhibitions. The Festival is estimated to have reached more than 280,000 people in Hong Kong through its performances and events this year.

The HKAF sincerely thanks the funding bodies, sponsors, Patron’s Club members, individual and institutional donors, Hong Kong Arts Festival Foundation patrons, sponsors of the 50th Anniversary Gala Dinner, as well as in-kind and other supporters. HKAF would also like to thank the 1,700-plus outstanding international and local artists, as well as audiences and event participants for their support.

PROGRAMMES OF THE 51ST HONG KONG ARTS FESTIVAL IN 2023

The 51st HKAF in 2023 included a splendid range of programmes from different genres:

Dance programmes included:

• Radio and Juliet, Le Sacre du Printemps (The Rite of Spring) and Peer Gynt performed by the Ballet of Slovene National Theatre Maribor

• Natalia Osipova in Ballet Superstars’ Force of Nature and Legendary Ballerina in Two Feet

• Dance-Opera Love Streams with director and choreographer Yang Yuntao, composers Chan Hing-yan and Daniel Lo, and lyricists Yi Heng and Wong Yi

• Jockey Club InnoArts Series’ First Steps, a collaboration between Hong Kong artists and Tamanoir Immersive Studio of France

• Dance Me to the End of Night, choreographed by Mao Wei

• Juliet & Romeo by Lost Dog of the UK

Opera programmes included:

• Monteverdi’s Il Ritorno d’Ulisse (The Return of Ulysses) by director William Kentridge, and performed by the Ricercar Consort and Handspring Puppet Company of South Africa

• Jockey Club Local Creative Talents Series’ Vixen, a collaboration between Hong Kong artists and Silent Opera of the UK

Cantonese opera programmes included:

• Cantonese Opera Classics Circa 2023 with director and artistic director Fredric Mao

• Cantonese Opera—Love in the Bamboo Grove by playwright Raymond To Kwok-wai

• Virtues and Morality—Four Cantonese Operas with artistic director Yuen Siu-fai

• Cantonese Opera—The Painted Skin (Refined Edition) featuring playwright and main cast Tse Hue-ying

Theatre programmes included:

• Shun Hing Group 70th Anniversary Proudly Sponsors Table for Six on stage, by playwright Sunny Chan and director Tony Wong

• True Copy by the BERLIN theatre company from Belgium

• Loveless Romance by playwright and director Cheung Tat-ming

• Film screenings by Internationaal Theater Amsterdam, including The things that pass, Oedipus, Ibsen House and Roman Tragedies

Musical programme included:

• Yat-sen Musical by composer and music director Peter Kam, playwright Sunny Chan, lyricist Chris Shum and director Tang Wai-kit, featuring Ling Man-lung in the leading role

Music programmes included:

• Bamberg Symphony with conductor Jakub Hrůša

• Chopin Winner plays Chopin—Bruce Liu Piano Recital

• Bruce Liu plays Chopin with Hong Kong Philharmonic Orchestra

• Sky Burial and Beethoven on Period Instruments by Insula orchestra and accentus with conductor Laurence Equilbey

• Voices of Hope and Togetherness—A Choral and Orchestral Gathering with conductor Wilson Ng, Esmé Quartet, the Hong Kong Arts Festival Chorus, the Hong Kong Children’s Choir and the Hong Kong Philharmonic Orchestra

• Anna Netrebko and Yusif Eyvazov in recital with pianist Rachel Cheung

• Anna Netrebko and Yusif Eyvazov in concert with the Hong Kong Philharmonic Orchestra, conductor Michelangelo Mazza and mezzo-soprano Carol Lin

• La storia di Orfeo (The Story of Orpheus) performed by Philippe Jaroussky and Emőke Baráth

• Cameron Carpenter plays Bach and Silent Movies—The General and Metropolis

• Dazzle—Esmé Quartet Recital

• Journey of the World Champion: King’s Harmonica Quintet 2023

• The Joy of Brass and Organ—Anne Lam and HK Phil Brass Quintet

• Hyperreality—an installation concert by media artist Keith Lam and music director, composer and performer Fung Lam

• Sheng World Music—Kevin Cheng & Friends

• Triptych for Flute—Tsang Yat-ho in Le Jardin des muses

• The Book of Water by composer, director and librettist Michel van der Aa

• The Stage Door on Mars by the Hong Kong Chinese Orchestra

FESTIVAL PLUS

Adding to the list of great performances, more than 300 Festival PLUS events offered audiences a fantastic range of supplementary activities including masterclasses, talks, meet-the-artist sessions, exhibitions, stage tours and film screenings to enrich the Festival experience. Highlights included:

• An antique piano recital by Yuan Sheng

• Masterclasses and lecture demonstrations by Bruce Liu, Yuan Sheng, Esmé Quartet and Torsten Mann

• Talks and meet-the-artist sessions with Sunny Chan, Elizabeth Hung Wong, Raymond To Kwok-wai, Esmé Quartet, Tsang Yat-ho, Philippe Pierlot, Adrian Kohler, Basil Jones, Cameron Carpenter and Marcus Rudolf Axt

• An exhibition on Monteverdi’s Il Ritorno d’Ulisse (The Return of Ulysses)—“The Making before The Return”

• A stage tour for the Jockey Club Local Creative Talents Series: “Into the World of Silent Opera—Vixen”

• Film screenings of a collection of Raymond To’s classics, including Hu Du Men, A Sentimental Journey and The Mad Phoenix

REACHING OUT TO YOUNG PEOPLE

HKAF’s Young Friends Scheme has remained popular amongst students this year. Over 90 school tour showcases and in-school workshops reached more than 13,000 students, and around 3,800 secondary and tertiary school students became members. They have attended a total of 76 performances, rehearsals and Young Friends Specials.

Discounted student tickets have been in high demand and over 10,000 were made available, fully supported by donations to the Student Ticket Scheme.

With the support of corporate sponsors, HKAF organises a wide range of outreach programmes via the school-based projects as well as arts appreciation performances and workshops targeted at young students. The Hong Kong Jockey Club Charities Trust continues to sponsor the Student Matinee programme, enabling several thousand students, who might otherwise have lacked the resources or opportunities, to attend two performances of Ballet of Slovene National Theatre Maribor’s Peer Gynt.

ACKNOWLEDGEMENT

The 51st HKAF is most grateful to its many sponsors, the main ones being: The Hong Kong Jockey Club Charities Trust, ICBC (Asia), China Everbright Bank Co., Ltd., Hong Kong Branch, HKR International, Industrial Bank Co. Ltd. Hong Kong Branch, Primasia Foundation, Shun Hing Group, and Sir Edward Youde Memorial Fund; Official Premium Car Partner DCH Mobility; Official Airline Finnair; Official Outdoor Media Partner POADmedia Limited; Official Video Technology Partner TFI Digital Media Limited; Gala Dinner Catering Support Sino Group; and Major Hotel Partner Grand Hyatt Hong Kong.

ABOUT THE HONG KONG ARTS FESTIVAL

Launched in 1973, the Hong Kong Arts Festival is a major international arts festival committed to enriching the cultural life of the city. In February and March every year the Festival presents leading local and international artists from all genres of the performing arts, giving equal importance to great traditions and contemporary creations. The Festival also commissions and produces works in theatre, music, chamber opera and contemporary dance by Hong Kong’s own creative talents and emerging artists, many of which have subsequently had successful runs in Hong Kong and overseas. Every year, the Festival also presents more than 300 “PLUS” and educational activities that offer diverse arts experiences to the community as well as tertiary, secondary and primary school students. In addition, through the “No Limits” project co-presented with The Hong Kong Jockey Club Charities Trust, the Festival strives to create an inclusive space for people with different abilities to share the joy of the arts together.

For more information about the Hong Kong Arts Festival, please visit hk.artsfestival.org.

MEDIA INQUIRIES

For further inquiries, please contact:

• Ms Katy Cheng (Marketing Director): (852) 2828 4930 / katy.cheng@hkaf.org

• Ms Tobie Chan (Deputy Marketing Manager): (852) 2828 4931 / tobie.chan@hkaf.org

Officiating Guests at the Finale Toasting Ceremony of the 51st Hong Kong Arts Festival on 18 March included: (from Left to right) Mr Vincent Liu, Director of Leisure and Cultural Services; Dr Liu Yagan, Chairman-Designate of ICBC (Asia); Mr Victor Cha, Chairman of the Hong Kong Arts Festival; Mr Chan Kwok-ki, Chief Secretary for Administration of the Government of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region; Mr Kevin Yeung Yun-hung, Secretary for Culture, Sports and Tourism; Dr Eric Li Ka-cheung, Deputy Chairman of The Hong Kong Jockey Club; and Ms Flora Yu, Executive Director of the Hong Kong Arts Festival.

Mr Chan Kwok-ki, Chief Secretary for Administration of the Government of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, gives a speech at the Finale Toasting Ceremony.