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Led by internationally acclaimed choreographer Lin Hwai-min, Cloud Gate Dance Theatre of Taiwan will stage the Hong Kong premiere of "Whisper of Flowers" tonight (August 4) and tomorrow at the Grand Theatre in the Hong Kong Cultural Centre. The production is presented by the Leisure and Cultural Services Department and is a sell-out.
Inspired by Anton Chekhov's "The Cherry Orchard", "Whisper of Flowers" forsakes the characters and plot of the original play, and instead explores the enduring theme of exuberance giving way to precarious darkness. Set to music selected from Bach's Suites for Solo Cello, "Whisper of Flowers" opens with a landscape of red petals on the stage. As dancers leap and whirl with abandonment, petals are splashed into different "geographies". The wind blows, the petals tremble and scatter, and bring more petals until the whole stage is carpeted with red petals.
In the second part of the work, night falls, and the wind continues to blow. Black human hair sneaks in, roams the white stage. Dancers keep spinning and jumping until they find the hair sticks to their sweaty bodies. As they look for their exit, dancers are shocked to see their images reflected and distorted on two walls of shimmering mirrors.
Ends/Wednesday, August 4, 2010
Issued at HKT 16:48
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