CHINA DAILY | EDITION Friday, December 28, 2018 | 11 Xiqu Centre opens in West Kowloon Cultural District with an array of colorful commissioned performances Venue New ground for opera meant to renew and broaden appreciation of Opera. Rebecca Lo reports.

n 1930s Hong Kong, Can- like dinner theater,” Yu notes. “The tonese operas abounded and audience enjoys a cup of fragrant were often performed in tem- tea and dim sum delicacies as they porary bamboo structures. enjoy the show. We also have a semi- INow a UNESCO Intangible Cul- nar hall for talks, fi lms, rehearsals tural Heritage-inscribed art form, and experimental productions.” back then Cantonese opera was a Opera troupes from Beijing, common form of entertainment in Hangzhou, Chongqing, Shanghai neighborhoods such as Shek Tong and Guangzhou will showcase their Tsui, which also boasted some of repertoire in Xiqu Centre’s open- the city’s most popular brothels, ing season. “We also recruit talent speakeasies and mahjong parlors. through open auditions and adver- Mary Chan, founder of indepen- tise through the local arts commu- dent book publisher MCCM Cre- nity,” Yu says. “As we wish to focus ations, grew up learning about the on Hong Kong performers, we don’t art form from her grandmother in directly recruit from the Bay Area, the 1960s and 1970s. though of course some Hong Kong “There were still regular Canton- Academy for Performing Arts grads ese Opera performances when I was are originally from Guangdong little,” she recalls. “Those were a province.” big deal for the district. My grand- As the world’s first purpose- mother loved Cantonese Opera and All seats in Xiqu Centre’s Grand Theatre are built center devoted to a specific we would all hike up Hill Road on angled to allow audiences the best line of sight. performing arts form, Xiqu has a the day of the performance with our number of unique features. “We use little stools to secure a good seat.” a special sur-title system that has As television, cinemas, the inter- been seamlessly incorporated into net and mobile devices began to the stage’s aesthetic,” Yu reveals. The building’s atrium was take over the entertainment indus- Patrons will be “The architecture’s acoustics system designed to be a space for try, Cantonese opera fans aged and treated to tea provides enhanced sound balance the public to enjoy. and dim sum their numbers dwindled. Since the for the percussion instruments typi- PHOTOS PROVIDED to CHINA DAILY during shows past few decades, there is only one cally used in Cantonese Opera.” at Tea House permanent theater devoted to live Theatre. Bryant Lu, vice chairman, Ronald Cantonese Opera performances, Lu & Partners, feels Xiqu Centre North Point’s heritage Sunbeam Xiqu Centre is designed by Bing Thom Architects has achieved its brief of facilitating Theatre. and Ronald Lu & Partners. public engagement by encouraging Xiqu Centre, a purpose-designed a fl ow of curious passers-by through building to inspire appreciation of Ming Dynasty (1368-1644) legend, a opening, WKCD commissioned its opens with high expectations.” The third is to make Cantonese the ground level. the art form, was unveiled a week work fi rst performed by the Sin Fung own version of Farewell My Concu- Research shows that Cantonese opera more accessible to the gen- “Xiqu Centre is the first world- ago. Designed by Bing Thom Archi- Ming Opera Troupe in 1959. bine, written, directed and arranged Opera su ers from an aging audi- eral population. “The Tea House class venue for Cantonese Opera,” tects and Ronald Lu & Partners, To drum up interest prior to its by Keith Lai and Janet Wong. The ence, the average age being 60. Also Theatre’s environment is more Lu states. “It sets a new international this is the fi rst among the perfor- experimental production is based the audience is more than 80 per- standard for this art form. The build- mance venues planned as part of on the Cannes Palme d’Or-winning cent female. Yu aims to open up ing’s atrium was specially designed West Kowloon Cultural District’s fi lm by Chen Kaige. After playing the art form to appeal to a wider to be an enjoyable public space for (WKCD) arts hub to open its doors. in Beijing, Xiamen, Singapore and audience base. people to gather, stay, and get to Xiqu Centre will o cially open on Hong Kong throughout 2017, the “My role is primarily to increase know more about Cantonese Opera. Sunday, followed by a full week of adaptation is slated to tour Taiwan appreciation,” Yu explains. “We have With only 45 minutes between performances. and Guangzhou in 2019. a three-pronged approach. First, Guangzhou and Hong Kong by the Fittingly, the opening coincides we want to capture more tourists. Express Rail Link, we look forward with the 10th anniversary of Can- The UNESCO mark We are doing this through our to Xiqu Centre fostering new audi- tonese Opera’s UNESCO inscrip- “Cantonese Opera is one of the Tea House Theatre, with shorter ences not only in Hong Kong but tion. A highlight is the commis- major forms of Chinese opera and 90-minute shows rather than the also from around the globe, to build sioned work Constructing the Xiqu was very popular in the Bay Area,” traditional three-and-a-half-hour a larger audience base.” Centre by Hong Kong photographer notes Louis Yu Kwok-lit, WKCD’s ones. The shows run for a longer Ducky Tse in the upper atrium lob- executive director overseeing per- period (than most Hong Kong stage by, on until March 2019. forming arts. “There were more shows), allowing tourists to book IF YOU GO The Grand Theatre’s opening per- than 10 theaters dedicated to Can- tickets ahead and make it one of the Xiqu Centre Grand Opening Events formance from Jan 21 to 30 is The Bryant Lu of Ronald Lu & tonese Opera in Hong Kong 60 musts on their itinerary.” Louis Yu, executive director, West Dates: Dec 30 – Jan 6, 2019 Venue: Xiqu Centre, Reincarnation of Red Plum, a 60th Partners says Xiqu Centre’s years ago. Today, only Sunbeam The second method is to target Kowloon Cultural District, says 88 West, anniversary update of the opera writ- atrium was designed to invite a remains. As Hong Kong’s one and local students with free educational Xiqu Centre will especially focus , Kowloon, ten by Tong Tik-sang, based on the free flow of passers-by. only UNESCO inscription, Xiqu programs and student matinées. on seeking out local talent. www.westkowloon.hk

Listen to the city Our pick of city events from Dec 28 to Jan 6, 2019 Visible and invisible elements of the city are explored in this mixed media exhibition that includes virtual and augmented reality exhibits. In the Shuffle Reality show, new media artist Keith Lam constructs sound architec- ture by layering the visible and the invisible, and blur- Sino-US trade: The way it was ring the boundaries with transcoding technology.

Sound in the City A new exhibition about the rich China and the US. The items on display Organized by: Leisure and Cultural Services Department trading history between China and the were selected from local and US-based Dates: Dec 28-31 Venue: 5/F, Hong Kong Visual Arts Centre, United States offers a glimpse into the collectors, including the Hong Kong 7A Kennedy Road, Mid-Levels history of Sino–US trade in the late 18th Maritime Museum, the Metropolitan Online registration required: http://soundinthecity.hk/ and 19th centuries. Divided into five Museum of Art, the Winterthur Museum, sections — Dreaming of the East, Treaty the Philadelphia Museum of Art and the Last jazz night of the year Ports, Speeding up the Trade, Exotic Independence Seaport Museum. Fringe Club’s Big Band Nights presents Tastes, and Building a Community — a two-hour performance by the Happy- the Hong Kong Maritime Museum Go-Lucky Big Band. Led by the Japanese trumpeter and conductor Kenny Matsuura, exhibition offers fascinating insights IF YOU GO the band is a full 18-piece orchestra that into the trade goods, export artifacts, was founded in 2010. The players are young nautical instruments and archival The Dragon and the Eagle — a Century and upcoming musicians, including several of Trade between China and the US materials used in times past. This timely music teachers, who focus on studying and Curated by the Hong Kong Maritime performing the classic compositions by exhibition explores the bilateral benefits Museum Duke Ellington. of maritime trade, business, marine Dates: Till April 4, 2019 Big Band Nights Venue: Hong Kong Maritime Museum, Presented by Fringe Club and nautical technologies, and social Central Pier No 8, Hong Kong Date: Dec 29, 9:30 pm and cultural developments between http://www.hkmaritimemuseum.org Venue: Fringe Dairy, Fringe Club, 2 Lower Albert Road, Central If you have an exciting event in the pipeline and would like to see it here in What’s the Buzz, do write in to [email protected] http://www.hkfringeclub.com

Food The pot of good vibes By MAGGIE BEALE pot is The Drunken Pot in Tsim Sha pot sets in recyclable “picnic box” handmade fi sh balls. Tsui at 2/F, 8 Observatory Road and its packaging, complete with utensils, The newly renovated Peking Gar- In the colder winter months, few sister venue in Causeway Bay at 27/F, reusable table cloth and glasses, tis- den restaurant in Star House in Tsim things are more comforting than a V Point, 18 Tang Lung Street. This sues and free rental of the pot and gas Sha Tsui is one of the only restaurants hearty, warming dish. winter The Drunken Pot is crafting cooker (with a refundable deposit). in Hong Kong to o er dishes inspired A favorite social activity at this time festive hotpot sets. One of their new Crystal Jade Jiang Nan on 3/F, Tai by Beijing’s Imperial Cuisine, charac- of the year is getting family and friends specialties combines a luscious broth Yau Plaza, 181 Johnston Road, Wan terized by elaborate detail and crafts- together to enjoy each other’s com- enhanced with black tru e sauce and Chai, specializes in Jiang-Nan cui- manship. Apart from its barbecued pany while sharing a hotpot. Found premium Italian white tru e oil — sine from south of the Yangtze Delta. Peking duck, another signature dish in almost every Chinese restaurant what’s not to love about that combo! There’s braised pork tendon with a is braised vegetable with ham, car- during the winter, a simple hotpot of A festive hotpot set for groups of choice of scallion or shrimp roe for a rot and mushroom. It is said that this Clockwise from left: simmering broth set mid-table is the two to six features jet-fresh sashimi The Drunken Pot’s dish high on collagen, or braised pork Qing Dynasty (1644-1911) dish was focus of togetherness — the heart of platter, salted egg yolk, fi sh crack- festive hotpot spread, belly with dried mushrooms, said to fi rst created for the emperor’s birth- good company. Diners can choose ling, angus beef short ribs, kurobuta braised vegetables be good for anti-aging. day during the Manchu Han Imperial from a variety of dishes set around pork and sou é including deep-fried with ham, carrot and Crystal Jade’s double-boiled soups Feast. It is presented in a lovely fan this bubbling pot, adding bits of meat, homemade bean curd, seaweed rolls, mushroom served at are outstanding. Choose from the shape. Another of their traditional del- fi sh and vegetables to suit their tastes. hand-made cuttlefi shballs and shrimp Peking Garden and renowned double-boiled chicken icacies is sautéed prawn with scallop The pot becomes not only the source balls, dumplings, black tru e, squid Crystal Jade’s double- soup with fi sh maw to double-boiled and sea whelk in chili sauce, served on of a good meal but also a catalyst of ink sausages, vegetable and mush- boiled chicken soup chicken soup with Yunnan ham, pork a hand-carved dragon — a symbol of warmth and friendliness that adds to rooms platter, alongside Inaniwa with fish maw. PHOTOS knuckle, pigeon eggs and cabbage power and strength in imperial China. the conviviality. udon. PROVIDED TO CHINA DAILY that has been cooked for four hours, Each dragon takes up to fi ve hours to One restaurant specializing in hot- The Drunken Pot also delivers hot- or double-boiled duck soup with carve by hand.