HONG KONG – The 53rd Hong Kong Arts Festival (HKAF) officially opened on 28 February with a performance by Italy’s Orchestra of the Teatro Comunale di Bologna. This year, more than 1,300 acclaimed international and local artists will stage over 45 programmes in more than 125 performances during the month-long Festival, including four new works/world premieres, five Asian premieres and two co-productions. As of 28 February, 80% of the over 100,000 available tickets for the performances have already been sold. 

The Festival’s opening ceremony was held at the Hong Kong Cultural Centre with The Honourable John KC Lee, Chief Executive of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, as Guest of Honour. Joining him in the officiating party were Prof Kingman Lo, Chairman of the Hong Kong Arts Festival; Mr Li Shuguang, Deputy Director General of the Department of Publicity, Cultural and Sports Affairs of the Liaison Office of the Central People’s Government in the HKSAR; Mr Michael T H Lee, Chairman of The Hong Kong Jockey Club; Ms Rosanna Law, Secretary for Culture, Sports and Tourism; Ms Manda Chan, Director of Leisure and Cultural Services; and Ms Flora Yu, Executive Director of the Hong Kong Arts Festival. The Festival Opening Performance was sponsored by The Hong Kong Jockey Club Charities Trust, and is one of three pillar programmes under “The Hong Kong Jockey Club Series”.

The 53rd HKAF continues to present renowned masters from Hong Kong and around the world, including the Orchestra of the Teatro Comunale di Bologna who opened the Festival, the China National Centre for the Performing Arts Orchestra who will bring the Festival Finale performance, pianist-conductor Sir András Schiff, baritone Christian Gerhaher, pianists Elisso Virsaladze and Pi-hsien Chen, percussionist Li Biao, Cantonese opera veteran Yuen Siu-fai, and the Shanghai Yue Opera House. The Festival also showcases an extraordinary array of masterpieces, with reconstructions of the original such as the opera Carmen and ballet La Sylphide, and brand-new interpretations including theatre works such as Thunderstorm, Crime and Punishment, TIME, Wuthering Heights and HIPPOLYTUS. This year’s Festival lineup also has a strong emphasis on fantasy and adventure, such as Jockey Club InnoArts Series: No reality now, Le Bal de Paris de Blanca Li, Jockey Club East-meets-West Series: 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea, Beethoven Wars: A Battle for Peace and Bells and Spells. Some of these programmes utilise VR and AR technology for an immersive and interactive experience, while others draw on the more traditional puppetry and circus arts.    

This year’s HKAF continues to bring the arts into the community through a diverse series of over 300 outreach events, including special events for Young Friends, educational activities for students at primary and secondary schools as well as tertiary institutions and different communities, and PLUS events for the public, including exhibitions, masterclasses, workshops, backstage tours, artist talks, film screenings and local cultural tours, enhancing the audiences’ Festival experience.    

Photo Credit: Hong Kong Arts Festival

Tickets to HKAF programmes can be purchased at URBTIX (www.urbtix.hk | 3166 1288 | URBTIX outlets). Tickets to performances at The Hong Kong Academy for Performing Arts are also available through Cityline (www.cityline.com | 2111 5333), while tickets for performances at the Xiqu Centre are also available through the Xiqu Centre Ticket Office. 

Members of the public can visit www.hk.artsfestival.org for detailed information about the programmes as well as register for selected events of Festival PLUS.