Tomorrow to July 21
Thanks to artists such as renowned writer Pai Hsien-yung and regional operatic troupes that have promoted Chinese opera through new repertoires and innovative interpretations of old works, audiences have grown steadily in recent years.
To meet this revived interest, the Leisure and Cultural Services Department has organised performances of the art of xiqu, or Chinese traditional theatre, in many different styles and forms.
Running from tomorrow until July 21, the HK$800,000 extravaganza will feature 10 major productions by companies including Peking Opera Theatre of Beijing, Sichuan Opera Theatre of Chengdu, Zhengzi Opera Troupe of Lufeng City of Guangdong and Hon Fung Cantonese Opera Institute. A host of free talks, lectures and exhibitions will also be held throughout the seven-week festival.
Department senior manager (theatre and Chinese opera) Teresa Lee Ming-chun says there are more than 300 regional Chinese operatic styles and the festival will present the main and most popular genres - such as Beijing, kunqu, yue and Cantonese opera - and lesser-known ones.
She says the last time a puxian opera was performed in Hong Kong was in the early 1980s at North Point's Sunbeam Theatre, while zhengzi opera is also rarely staged locally. 'For a long time, zhengzi opera has not been performed on the mainland, either, and is considered to be on the verge of extinction,' Lee says. 'Fortunately, there has been a revival of this genre in recent years by troupes in Guangzhou and younger artists are injecting new energy into this art form that has a history of more than 600 years.'
The Zhengzi Opera Troupe (above) of Lufeng City, Guangdong will perform two full-length operas - Three Girls Vying to be Executed and Battledrums of Jinshan - as well as extracts from four works, including The Sworn Brothers' Reunion and The Gift of a Sword from Baihua.