Ahead of the 200th anniversary of Giuseppe Verdi's birth next year, a travelling pop-up cinema is screening a Hong Kong-produced film that celebrates the Italian composer's operatic tragedy La Traviata.
A collaboration between the Foundation for the Arts and Music in Asia (Fama), The Link Real Estate Investment Trust, Opera Hong Kong and architecture company Aedas, The Traviata Story will be screened in an indoor marquee at Lok Fu Plaza until October 14. The 90-minute film features footage from celebrated performances of La Traviata, discussions about the opera and commentary by actress Louisa So Yuk-wa.
The tragic story of a courtesan who fails in her bid to marry into high society may resonate with many people in these materialistic times. Laurence Scofield, chairman of Fama, says the film not only features "beautiful singing and a powerful story [that] touches on important issues in Hong Kong society today, [but is also] a fantastic way to make opera accessible and digestible.
"It is drawing huge numbers of ordinary, everyday people who come to experience opera, usually for the first time."
The pop-up cinema is a prelude to Fama's autumn series of New York Metropolitan Opera productions, which will be screened in Hong Kong cinemas from December. Opera Hong Kong is also staging a live performance of La Traviata at the Cultural Centre between October 11 and 14.