THE AIR IN THE Kwun Tong studio is heavy with emotion and Olivia Cheng Man-nga is in tears. Then reality kicks in as the director calls for a break.
One-time movie star Cheng is rehearsing the upcoming production of Closer, the award-winning drama by British playwright Philip Marber. Still in character, she retreats to a dark corner to pull herself together. It's her first acting role since quitting show business 14 years ago - and her first foray into theatre.
Cheng has taken on a demanding production for her stage debut. An intense work, Closer explores the nature of desire, love and betrayal through the relationships of two couples: photographer Anna (Cheng) and her dermatologist husband Larry (Stephen Au Kam-tong); and a struggling writer, Dan (Desmond Tang Wai-kit), and his stripper girlfriend Alice (Perry Chiu Woon).
But while some viewers were disturbed by its hard-nosed examination of infidelity - as depicted in the 2004 film version starring Julia Roberts - Cheng says the material doesn't bother her. 'In real-life relationships, the issues are more serious and complicated. Some of my friends are in similar situations. One is aware that her husband has an ongoing affair with her friend, but keeps quiet. And two other couples I know, the partners are having affairs with each other.'
Despite the long break, the 45-year-old says her return to acting has been stress-free. 'I don't have a great desire to return to films since I have appeared in so many,' she says. Cheng has received many offers to work in mainland film productions, but rejected them all. It's too much of a grind, she says.
As a teenager, she set the Hong Kong record for the high jump and was crowned Miss Hong Kong in 1979. She was the first local movie star to be photographed nude. Maintaining her interest in sport, Cheng went on to coach golf.