Let your tears flow – audiences promised a moving experience as Cantonese musical gets the full treatment
Staging of show with music by the 50-strong Hong Kong Sinfonietta and a Universal Music Limited recording adds a new dimension to the genre
A Cantonese musical is being performed with a full orchestra and recorded commercially for the first time – an event its producers say will bolster the unique genre.
The Passage Beyond in Concert, a crossover musical premiered in 2014 by the Actors’ Family and 50-strong Hong Kong Sinfonietta, returns to the stage after a touch-up to refine the storyline and musical scores.
The show, which begins on Thursday at Tsuen Wan Town Hall, is preceded by five days of intensive recording by Universal Music Limited, a first for the international label.
“This is truly a unique experience beyond even Broadway musicals, which may not support a full orchestra on the scale of the Sinfonietta,” said composer Leon Ko, who has worked on Broadway in New York.
“It means a lot to the development of musicals sung in Cantonese, a dialect that is very effective in storytelling due to its versatility.”
Ko’s partner, lyricist Chris Shum, attributed its success to the language’s distinctive nine-tone system, which was more finessed and musical than the four-tone Putonghua.