In her latest solo piece, Of Grandeur and Desolation, which opens this evening at the Cultural Centre, Mui Cheuk-yin, one of Hong Kong's leading dancers and choreographers will be performing four works, each inspired by a piece of literature. Her sources are the ci poems of Song poet, Li Qingzhao, the novels of Shanghai author Eileen Chang, who later moved to America, the work of Taiwanese writer Pai Hsien-yung and the poem The Clogs, by Hong Kong's Leung Ping-kwan.
Mui has long been regarded as one of the most exciting local talents, and this collection of works was in fact commissioned on the basis of previous successes.
In a recent radio interview, Mui explained why she chose to do solo works, rather than ensemble pieces. It is partly a question of finding it easier to imagine her own body doing the steps, and partly, she said, that with limited rehearsal space available, it is easier to write for one dancer. 'Then I can rehearse in the park, in my room, anywhere,' she explained.
Hong Kong is, of course, in the worst economic slump for decades, and spending on the arts has never been a very high priority here anyway, but it does seem awful that one of the territory's best dancers cannot even find a decent rehearsal space and has to prance about in public spaces instead.
In Germany culture gets a huge chunk of the budget. Dancers do not just get studios, they get their own theatres. The legendary dancer-choreographer Pina Bausch, who created a special show about Hong Kong for the 1997 Arts Festival, has her own theatre, the Pina Bausch Wuppertal Dance Theatre, and she has invited Mui to perform there as part of this October's 25th anniversary celebrations of the founding of the group. I doubt the Germans will expect Mui to work in her bedroom.
Nothing but Liszt Two years ago, pianist Leslie Howard - who is well on the way to making history with a complete recording of Liszt's piano works for Hyperion Records - told the American Record Guide: 'I refuse to do recitals where Liszt is the only composer represented'. But someone appears to have persuaded him to change his mind, because on Tuesday night he will be doing just that, as part of Hong Kong's fourth International Piano Festival at City Hall. Liszt's Sarabande & Chaconne, Liszt's Variations on a Motif by Bach Weinen Klagen, Liszt's Legendes . . . perhaps other composers will be represented in the encores.
