Hong Kong musical on marine sustainability decries shark’s fin soup with dance, acrobatics, orchestral music and contortionism
- Shark Symphony is a multi-arts musical spreading the message about marine conservation, with sword dancing, throat singing, acrobatics and burlesque
- The musical, from the City Chamber Orchestra of Hong Kong, also features belly-dancing jellyfish, contortionists and a cyr wheel performance
Take a throat singer from Finland, add a Chinese sword dancer, mix in a couple of acrobats from Venezuela and spice it up with some burlesque-dancing lobsters and belly-dancing jellyfish and what do you have?
A vibrant musical with an important message about marine conservation, according to Leanne Nicholls, artistic director of the City Chamber Orchestra of Hong Kong (CCOHK).
On April 20 and 21, at the Tsuen Wan Town Hall Auditorium, CCOHK serves up Shark Symphony, a musical combining dance, orchestral music, acrobatics and contortion performances while raising awareness about marine sustainability.
Co-directed by Nicholls and award-winning Norwegian actor and director/ choreographer Morten Ruda, a highlight, she says, is the “mesmerising sounds” of Finnish musician Antti Paalanen, known worldwide for blending folk accordion with dance beats and Siberian throat singing.
Shark Symphony tells the story of two businessmen who open an underwater restaurant in Hong Kong that dishes up responsibly caught seafood, only for operations to go south when shark fin soup is served at a wedding banquet.