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Oliver Chou

Compared to its counterpart in West Kowloon, the East Kowloon Cultural Centre has been quieter in almost every way. But it will be all noise next month when the pile drivers pound the 2.16-hectare site in Ngau Tau Kok to create an arts hub.
Overseeing the HK$4.1 billion project, Elaine Yeung Chi-lan, assistant director of the Leisure and Cultural Services Department, sees the future hub as her grand finale after a long career in managing the city’s performing arts.
“I could have taken early retirement now but would like to take on this project up to its completion in 2020,” says Yeung, referring to the early retirement option at age 55 for those who joined the civil service before 1987.
“The East Kowloon Cultural Centre is not just one more cultural facility in addition to existing venues run by the LCSD, quite a few of which are replicas of City Hall consisting of a bundle of facilities such as a library, marriage registry, and so on,” she says.

“Some are civic centres, including a few located right next to a wet market.
“It’s got its own character based on users rather than designers or administrators, and it will play a role in the Energising East Kowloon initiative.”
READ MORE: Move over West Kowloon, Hong Kong’s East Kowloon set for cultural blooming
Having worked in both regional and flagship venues, Yeung sees great demand for performing venues among budding arts groups and practitioners the government has groomed over the years. The shortage of venues – applications rose 184 per cent in the past decade, and as many as 90 per cent were turned down last year – has deprived young artists of a chance to shine.
“Many government grants have been issued to artists in recent years through the Hong Kong Arts Development Council and Home Affair Bureau, but what good does it do if the artists have nowhere to practise their arts?” Yeung asks.
This output of young professionals in the arts, from performers to technicians, will go on
“The West Kowloon project has brought about a vogue for cultural studies at tertiary institutions, and there are graduates from the Hong Kong Academy for Performing Arts every year. We in LCSD also provide internships in arts administration. This output of young professionals in the arts, from performers to technicians, will go on.
“We need to address their needs no less than the so-called nine major performing arts groups, which began from nothing at the outset,” she says.

With five halls of varying sizes – from 150 seats to 1,200 seats – at the East Kowloon hub, small and medium local performing groups will get a better chance to launch their first performances within manageable ticket sales thanks to the location and cosy logistics.
“The three venues for music, dance and drama will have an arena-setting which draws the audience very close to the performers,” she says.
Yeung says the centre’s connectivity will also apply to the general public, especially those in the neighbourhood, who may want to just want to drop in and take a break on the way home from the wet market.
“The centre is a conduit to almost everything as there are bridges and paths that connect it with Kowloon Bay MTR station, and we have reserved a spot for a future connection to Amoy Gardens, but that would be built at the expense of the estate there,” she says.
With over three decades of venue management under her belt, Yeung is in a better position than anyone to make sure that mistakes will not be repeated. The centre’s transparent corridor across from the MTR station, for example, is a lesson learned from the windowless Hong Kong Cultural Centre on the edge of Victoria Harbour.

“The East Kowloon centre is the first major venue in 15 years since the opening of Kwai Tsing and Yuen Long theatres. So my team is fully motivated to put our minds together for nothing but the best. We’ve come to such small details as the men-women washroom ratio, which is 1-3, having seen the long line at the lady’s room at the existing venue with a 1-1 ratio. We also had a session with the disabled including a provision for guide dogs,” she says.
The only compromise is on parking, which is limited to 30 due to a budget cut that ruled out an underground car park. But the rest is expected to go according to plan, including creative but non-conforming programmes by young artists.
“As society progresses, creativity is something a government cannot intercede in, especially in arts and culture, like drama, which reflects everyday life. We are very open about this. We may discuss with artists on ways to express a certain issue as there are many different ways to express artistically. But that should not be considered as censorship,” she says.
READ MORE: Art attack: how Hong Kong’s cultural providers will cope with budget cuts
“What I feel quite strongly is when we approve the funding of a performance and present it in our name but at the end get criticised for censorship. That’s like a slap on both cheeks,” she adds.
Yeung recalls a play she took to the 2010 World Expo in Shanghai where the officials there expressed disbelief at how the Hong Kong government could have funded a play that attacking its willingness to demolish historic monuments
“That is something quite natural in Hong Kong because it reflects the real life here,” she smiles.
“Unlike venues built some 20 years ago, the East Kowloon hub should not be operated according to a rigid menu or guidebook, but with flexibility and energy.”
She remembers some years ago she proposed posting banners on the exterior of the Cultural Centre, but staff resisted her because they feared other arts groups would follow suit. But her insistence, including taking the matter to her superior, paid off.
“We should not be afraid of change as long as we present something of quality and taste that befits Hong Kong’s name as a smart city, and that’s the overall mandate for the East Kowloon hub,” she says.


Hong Kong cultural project proves a fitting finale for a dedicated official 

Interview Elaine Yeung, assistant director (performing arts) of Leisure and Cultural Services Department (LCSD) on East Kowloon Cultural Centre in Tsim Sha Tsui. 14SEP15

03 Dec 2013, Hong Kong, China --- China, Hong Kong Cultural Centre in Kowloon behind palm trees --- Image by ¬© Holger Spiering/Westend61/Corbis [02NOVEMBER2014 REVIEW]

Elaine Yeung, assistant director (performing arts) of Leisure and Cultural Services Department (LCSD) on East Kowloon Cultural Centre in Tsim Sha Tsui.

No Caption Available.

Art attack: how Hong Kong's cultural providers will cope with budget cuts

A visitor poses with an exhibition of Ju Ming sculptures at the Museum of Art. Photo: Edward Wong

Chan Shing-wai, assistant director of LCSD's Heritage and Museums Division. Photo: May Tse

Elaine Yeung, assistant director, performing arts LCSD

Cloud Gate Dance Theatre perform Rice at last year's New Vision Festival.

Move over West Kowloon, Hong Kong's East Kowloon set for cultural blooming

An artist’s impression of the East Kowloon Cultural Centre. Photo: Architectural Services Department

Elaine Yeung Chi-lan, assistant director of the Leisure and Cultural Services Department, places high hopes on the East Kowloon Cultural Centre. Photo: Franke Tsang

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Hong Kong

After a long career managing the city’s performing arts, Elaine Yeung wants to make sure her final project is something special 


Hong Kong cultural project proves a fitting finale for a dedicated official

.css-1c6uqr6{color:inherit;font-weight:inherit;font-size:inherit;font-family:inherit;line-height:inherit;overflow-wrap:break-word;}After a long career managing the city’s performing arts, Elaine Yeung wants to make sure her final project is something special

After a long career managing the city’s performing arts, Elaine Yeung wants to make sure her final project is something special