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Jingkun Theatre and Youth Peking and Kunqu Opera Troupe of Shanghai will jointly present the exquisite charm of Peking Opera and Kunqu Opera in three performances in October.
Renowned Peking and Kunqu Opera artists Tang Yuen-ha and Geng Tianyuan, National Class One performer Wang Yujin, together with youth artists Weng Jiahui, Yang Yanan, Gong Xue, Kang Xiaohu, Tan Xiao and others will perform a programme including ¡§The House Wulong¡¨ (Peking Opera) and numerous classical excerpts from Peking and Kunqu Operas.
Tang Yuen-ha was the winner of the 8th Plum Blossom Award for Chinese Theatre, and the only Hong Kong Chinese opera artist to have received this highest honour in Chinese theatrical arts. She was also presented with an Outstanding Performance Award at the Third China Peking Opera Festival in 2001 and 2006. Tang has been invited to give demonstration performances and talks by the University of London, University of York, the Centre for Performance Research of the University of Wales, and the Australian National University.
Jingkun Theatre was established in 1986 to develop and promote Peking Opera and Kunqu Opera. Jingkun Theatre was invited to represent the Hong Kong SAR in the China Peking Opera Festival and China Kunju Festival held in Suzhou in 2006. In 2007, it was invited to represent Hong Kong in the Third Festival of Traditional Chinese Opera in Paris, where ¡§The House Wulong¡¨ won with the Special Jury Prize and the Best Actor Award.
Details of the performances are as follows:
October 3 (Friday)
¡§The House Wulong¡¨ (Peking Opera)
October 4 (Saturday)
Excerpts from Peking and Kunqu Operas: ¡§Intercepting the Horse¡¨, ¡§The Fiasco¡¨ from ¡§You Sanjie¡¨, ¡§Lady Shaojun Going Beyond the Great Wall¡¨, ¡§Pursuing the Dream¡¨ from ¡§The Peony Pavilion¡¨
October 5 (Sunday)
Excerpts from ¡§The Story of the Jade Hairpin¡¨ (Kunqu Opera): ¡§The Heart-stirring Lute¡¨, ¡§The Visit to the Love-sick¡¨, ¡§The Secretive Poetic Epistle¡¨, ¡§Urging the Nephew to Attend the Civil Examination¡¨, ¡§Autumn River¡¨.
The performances (with English surtitles of lyrics and dialogue), presented by the Leisure and Cultural Services Department, will be at 7.30pm at the Studio Theatre, Hong Kong Cultural Centre. Tickets priced at $280 and $160 are now available at all URBTIX outlets. Half-price concessions will be granted to senior citizens aged 60 or above, people with disabilities, full-time students and Comprehensive Social Security Assistance recipients. (Limited tickets for students and CSSA recipients are available on a first-come, first-served basis.) For package purchase discount, please refer to the programme leaflet for details.
For programme enquiries, call 2268 7325; for ticketing enquiries and reservations, call 2734 9009. Internet bookings are available at www.urbtix.hk. For credit card telephone bookings, call 2111 5999. Visit www.lcsd.gov.hk/cp for more information on the programme.
Ends/Friday, August 22, 2008
Issued at HKT 10:01
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