West Kowloon Cultural District Performing Arts Programmes receive multiple accolades and award nominations in Beijing and Hong Kong

Experimental Cantonese Opera Farewell My Concubine (New Adaptation) presented by the Xiqu Centre was listed in “The 40 Most Influential Productions in Chinese Contemporary Black Box Theatre”

The West Kowloon Cultural District Authority is pleased to announce that six xiqu, theatre, dance and music programmes produced by its two major performing arts venues – the Xiqu Centre and Freespace have received accolades and award nominations in Beijing and Hong Kong respectively this month. Among them, the Xiqu Centre’s first ever commissioned Experimental Cantonese Opera Farewell My Concubine (New Adaptation) was listed as one of “The 40 Most Influential Productions in Chinese Contemporary Black Box Theatre” - the only Cantonese opera among the 40 awarded productions.

The Xiqu Centre is a contemporary gateway to the ancient art form of Chinese traditional theatre. Its first commissioned Experimental Cantonese Opera Farewell My Concubine (New Adaptation), staged in 2016, was awarded one of “The 40 Most Influential Productions” in a list of “Most Influential Chinese Contemporary Black Box Theatre programmes in 40 Years” announced in Beijing on 23 March 2022. This is another prominent award attained by the production following the Best Experimental Xiqu Award at the China (Beijing) Performing Arts Expo 2018, as well as a few other awards in Beijing.

This award is part of the celebrations to mark the 40th anniversary of the Chinese Contemporary Black Box Theatre, organised by Beijing Theatre Association and other leading authorities in Mainland China. The list was carefully selected after rounds of rigorous assessments and voting by experts and academics in the Mainland China industry. Apart from being one of the two selected Hong Kong theatre productions among the hundreds of submissions, Experimental Cantonese Opera Farewell My Concubine (New Adaptation) is the only Cantonese Opera among the 40 awarded plays.

Freespace is a new centre for contemporary performance in Hong Kong. Two of its 2021 theatre productions, Freespace x Edward Lam Dance Theatre: Hello, Baoyu and Freespace x Rimini Protokoll x On & On Theatre Workshop: 100% Hong Kong, have recently received five nominations in various categories in the 2021 Critics Awards by the International Association of Theatre Critics (Hong Kong). The winning list will be announced by late April 2022.

In addition, two dance and music programmes curated by Freespace – ON VIEW: Panoramic Suite and Choreographer and Composer Lab are nominated for the 23rd Hong Kong Dance Awards by Hong Kong Dance Alliance in categories including Outstanding Lighting and/or Visual Design, Music Composition and/or Sound Design and Services. Nine Songs, co-presented by Hong Kong Dance Company and Freespace, received five nominations in various categories including Outstanding Large Venue Production, Performance by Male /Female Dancer and Ensemble Performance. Winners will be announced on 16 April 2022.

Paul Tam, Executive Director, Performing Arts, West Kowloon Cultural District Authority expressed excitement on the team’s achievements: ‘Our performing arts team has curated a series of high-standard performances in the spirit of “the show must go on” despite the challenges brought by the pandemic over the past two years. The accolades and nominations in key awards testify to the hard work and professionalism of our team, which I am immensely proud of. I would like to express my gratitude to the artistic team and our partners for their dedicated efforts in delivering high-quality productions. The West Kowloon Cultural District will continue to provide a diverse range of cultural and performing arts experience for the public and encourage wider participation in the arts.’

Remarks:
Freespace ON VIEW: Panoramic Suite is nominated for:

• Outstanding Lighting and/or Visual Design (Visual Design: Sue Healey, Judd Overton, Maurice Lai, Kei Fushiki)
• Outstanding Music Composition and/or Sound Design (Sound Design: Darrin Verhagen)

Freespace Choreographer and Composer Lab is nominated for:

• Outstanding Services to Dance

Freespace and Hong Kong Dance Company Nine Songs is nominated for:

• Outstanding Large Venue Production
• Outstanding Performance by Male Dancer, Huang Lei
• Outstanding Performance by Female Dancer, Hua Chi-yu
• Outstanding Performance by Female Dancer, Pan Lingjuan
• Outstanding Ensemble Performance

Freespace x Edward Lam Dance Theatre: Hello, Baoyu is nominated for:

• Performance of the Year
• Director of the Year (Edward Lam, Low Kee Hong)
• Scenography of the Year

Freespace x Rimini Protokoll x On & On Theatre Workshop: 100% Hong Kong is nominated for:

• Performance of the Year
• Performer of the Year

Remarks

About the West Kowloon Cultural District
The West Kowloon Cultural District is one of the largest and most ambitious cultural projects in the world. Its vision is to create a vibrant new cultural quarter for Hong Kong on forty hectares of reclaimed land located alongside Victoria Harbour. With a varied mix of theatres, performance spaces, and museums, the West Kowloon Cultural District will produce and host world-class exhibitions, performances, and cultural events, providing twenty-three hectares of public open space, including a two-kilometre waterfront promenade.

About Freespace
Freespace is Hong Kong’s new centre for contemporary performance. Located in the heart of the Art Park, Freespace presents multi-genre performances and events, produces boundary-pushing collaborations, and promotes new ways of seeing and experiencing performance. Freespace houses The Box, a flexible space for cutting-edge performances and one of the largest black box theatres in Hong Kong, two multi-purpose spaces, The Room and The Studio, designed for creative exchange and artistic collaborations, and Lau Bak Livehouse, an intimate bar cafe presenting live music from Hong Kong and around the world.

About the Xiqu Centre
The first landmark performing arts venue to open in West Kowloon, the Xiqu Centre acts as the eastern gateway to the cultural district. Specifically built for performances of Chinese traditional theatre, the Xiqu Centre is designed to conserve, promote and develop the art of Chinese opera. It also provides a centre for the production, education and research of this unique art form. In 2019, the Xiqu Centre was listed as one of TIME Magazine’s World’s Greatest Places.