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British cult band the Tiger Lillies will join forces with Danish theatre troupe Theatre Republique to perform a musical entitled "The Tiger Lillies Perform Hamlet" in September, turning Shakespeare's play into an explosion of music and images.
The musical is adapted from Shakespeare's "Hamlet" which tells the gruesome tale of a young man named Hamlet who is faced with the truth of his family history and a duty to seek revenge for his father's murder. The combination of Shakespeare's potent drama, the musical powers of the Tiger Lillies and the creative imagination of Theatre Republique creates a unique scenic alchemy for lovers of both classical and contemporary theatre.
In the musical, Shakespeare's original text has been cleverly condensed - soliloquies, side plots, drawn out combats and verbal banter are transformed into macabre cabaret tunes about the darkest corners of the human soul with brilliant, extravagantly poetic images eloquently conveying the core of "Hamlet'. The musical production shifts and transforms within the brilliantly crafted yet ominous castle set designed by Theatre Republique's Artistic Director Martin Tulinius, while the Tiger Lillies drive the story seductively forward through 21 newly composed songs.
Formed in 1989, the Tiger Lillies are regarded as one of the most original, provocative and genre-defying bands of the modern era. Their music is a mixture of pre-war Berlin cabaret, anarchic opera and gypsy music, echoing the voices of Bertolt Brecht (German poet and playwright) and Jacques Brel (Belgian singer and song writer). The band was an Olivier Awards winner in 2002 and a Grammy nominee in 2003.
Theatre Republique was founded in 2009 in Copenhagen, Denmark. The troupe is dedicated to creating contemporary adaptations of theatre classics with an emphasis on a multimedia experience where set design, costumes, lighting and video come together in a collaborative form, presenting works that challenge the limitations set by conventional concepts of theatre.
"The Tiger Lillies Perform Hamlet" is presented by the Leisure and Cultural Services Department. It will be performed in English, with Chinese and English surtitles, at 8pm on September 9 and 10 (Friday and Saturday) and at 3pm on September 11 (Sunday) at the Auditorium of Kwai Tsing Theatre. Tickets priced at $180, $280, $360 and $420 are now available at URBTIX (www.urbtix.hk). For telephone credit card bookings, please call 2111 5999. For programme and concessionary schemes, please call 2268 7323 or visit www.lcsd.gov.hk/CE/CulturalService/Programme/en/multi_arts/program_1098.html.
Ends/Friday, June 17, 2016
Issued at HKT 11:02
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