Showtime: best of fire and ice on display in Macau
Mixture of acclaimed performers and up-and-coming artists lined up to perform at the 28th Macao Arts Festival
It’s not only the weather that is heating up. Performers from around the world are converging on Macau for the 28th Macao Arts Festival, from April 28 to May 31. The schedule adopts the Heterotopia theme to explore the diverse possibilities of space. It is packed with 25 shows and exhibitions, and an outreach programme of talks, master classes, workshops, meet-the-artists sessions, school performances, art critiques and movie screenings comprising 100 activities.
Acclaimed performers and up-and-coming artists are featured. After opening the festival with Play and Play: An Evening of Movement and Music, a reinterpretation of Schubert and Ravel’s classics, the famed North American modern dance company, Bill T. Jones / Arnie Zane, is scheduled to present another hypnotising performance of A Letter to My Nephew.
Many plays that have taken the world by storm are in the line-up. The Nether, written by Los Angeles-based dramatist Jennifer Haley, portrays dark human desires and the virtual world. Miss Revolutionary Idol Berserker from Japan offers an explosive mish-mash of musicals, extreme reality TV shows and everything in between.
Emerging Portuguese choreographer Marco da Silva Ferreira presents the ballet Hu(r)mano, while Aneckxander, from Belgium, seeks to amaze you with a mixture of acrobatics and body language.
Performances that commemorate local cultures feature prominently. The Shaanxi People’s Art Theatre celebrates the 110th anniversary of Chinese theatre with the classic Westland Feuds, while the Comuna de Pedra Arts and Cultural Association presents Songs of Migrants, revealing memories of local migrants and important parts of local history.
The closing show features The Seagull, Russian author Anton Chekhov’s 1895 masterpiece, performed by the Reykjavik City Theatre, with the plot relocated to Iceland.
Off stage, the outreach programme allows audience members to get up close and personal with featured artists. Pay attention while you are in town, as Japanese director Toco Nikaido and her troupe of Miss Revolutionary Idols Berserker will appear on the streets of Macau.
In Cotai, Thriller Live has returned from its run at London’s West End, and will run at The Parisian Macao’s Parisian Theatre until September 3. This high-energy explosion of pop, rock, soul and disco and tribute to Michael Jackson has been seen by more than 4 million people in over 30 countries. Tickets start from HK$180.
Across the street, the tunes of the Seventies will be on display for the Village People 40th Anniversary Tour with special guests Björn Again at The Venetian Theatre on May 12 and 13.
Village People founding members Felipe Rose and Alexander Briley will be among those on stage displaying their moves in their famous outfits – Native American, GI, cop, biker, cowboy and construction worker. The addition of Björn Again’s parody of the Swedish pop group ABBA will keep you entertained all night. Tickets start from HK$280.
If you want the chance to cool down, the Kung Fu Panda Adventure Ice World with the DreamWorks All-Stars offers entertainment for the entire family until July 9.
The Ice World at Cotai Expo has been created from thousands of blocks of multicoloured ice carved into detailed sculptures by craftsmen from Harbin in northern China.
This year’s Ice World promises to be the most spectacular yet, with colourful new DreamWorks Animation characters brought to life through light and sound, along with themed games, snacks, souvenirs and character meet-and-greets. Tickets start from HK$120.