Little Cosette should shed an extra tear. When the young star of Les Miserables makes her final curtain call at the Cultural Centre tonight, it may mark the end of Hong Kong's brief flirtation with hit musicals. But there will be no shortage of happy laughter elsewhere. Singapore and other regional competitors stand to gain from the Urban Council's plan to raise booking fees and limit show runs to 90 days, so making it commercially unviable to bring any further big musicals to Hong Kong. Phantom of the Opera attracted $70 million worth of tourist revenue last year. Les Miserables has generated many millions. If the Urban Council has its way, that money will go elsewhere in future. Staging such musicals should be part of Hong Kong's emergence as a regional services hub, luring visitors to see events unavailable in their home countries. Financial Secretary Donald Tsang Yam-kuen was one of the first to enjoy the Hong Kong production of Les Miserables. Perhaps it is not too late for him to intervene with a word to the Urban Council, and save Cosette's successors from the guillotine.
