Theatre

This December, Artocrite Theater premieres I am Tree in The Box at Freespace. 

Inspired by South Korean author Han Kang’s prize-winning novel The Vegetarian, and French philosopher Jean-Jacques Rousseau's The Reveries of the Solitary Walker, the production explores the complexity of contemporary relationships through a tale of determination, defiance and self-sacrifice.  

Waking from a dream of a tree, a woman decides to stop eating meat. Those around her react in different ways – her husband dismisses her choice as a fad, her nephew views her as a muse for an art project, and her sister blames her for causing family chaos. But does anyone really see or hear her real motivations?

I am Tree is part of the WestK Creators series, with its research and development supported by WestK. This programme is also part of the “Venaissance” project by Artocrite Theater. 

About WestK Creators

WestK Creators celebrates contemporary Hong Kong artists working across a variety of performing arts disciplines, contexts and forms. Encouraging exchange and collaboration, the series showcases innovative original productions, and nurtures experimentation and new perspectives for the Hong Kong performing arts scene.

Curated and produced by the Contemporary Performance Team of West Kowloon Performing Arts Division, WestK Creators promotes diverse creative voices and aesthetics, supports new work development, and facilitates the creation process from concept to stage, through residencies, research and development opportunities and work-in-progress presentations.

About Artocrite Theater "Venaissance"

“Venaissance”, a portmanteau merging from two words: Vegetation and Renaissance, is the major programme series of Artocrite Theater. Introducing vegetation-inspired stories, the series explores the vulnerability of humans and the dilemmas in everyday life. 

Human and vegetation share a co-existence relationship in our daily lives. Numerous literatures and plays have used vegetation as a metaphor for humanity. Drawing inspiration from different plants and their distinct qualities, Artocrite Theater takes vegetation as the theme to question about human nature and our existence.
 

Artistic Team:

Playwright and Director: Birdy Wong Ching-yan 

Performers: Tree Kwok, Boat Chan, Birdy Wong Ching-yan, Wong Chiu-yum, Zhao Yiyi, Choi Ming-hong

Choreographer: KT Yau

Set Designer: Ryan Lo

Lighting Designer: Yeung Tsz-yan

Video Designer: Dan Fong^

Composer and Sound Designer: Leung Po-wing^

Costume Designer: Cindy Ho Pui-shan^

Dramaturg: Chan Chun-leong*

Producers: Wan Wai-ching, CoCo Tam

^With support and kind permission of the Hong Kong Academy for Performing Arts
*2023/24 The Arts Talents Internship Matching Programme is supported by the Hong Kong Arts Development Council

Presenter:

Hong Kong Arts Development Council fully supports freedom of artistic expression. The views and opinions expressed in this project do not represent the stand of the Council.

Co-presenter:

Project Grant:
“Venaissance” is financially supported by the Arts Capacity Development Funding Scheme of the Government of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region.

The content of this programme does not reflect the views of the Government of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region.

Devised and created by Rooftop Productions and the young artists of HKAPA’s School of Drama, Songs of Innocence and Experience presents the stories of a group of young people coming of age in contemporary Hong Kong.

Taking its name from the work of William Blake, and inspiration from John Milton’s Paradise Lost and Areopagitica, Songs of Innocence and Experience deals with the eternal struggles of youth – between respecting authority and wanting freedom, and forging meaningful new pathways as emerging adults. Through a fragmented montage of theatre, live original music, pop culture references, camera play and projections from Blake’s illustrated versions of Paradise Lost, the production offers a humorous and poignant reflection on the hybridity of contemporary Hong Kong society, the drive and passions of youth, and individual explorations of self-identity.

First staged at The Hong Kong Academy for Performing Arts in 2022, the production has been developed and adapted for The Box. The new production features a revised script, original and new ensemble and band members, and enhanced scenography and projection design.

Songs of Innocence and Experience was nominated for Scenography of the Year and Director of the Year at the IATC (HK) Critics Awards 2023.

“Extraordinarily playful and passionate, bringing balance to the serious topic being dealt with” – William Chan, Art critic, International Association of Theatre Critics (Hong Kong) website

“Telling stories of fallen angels, they make the audience consider their own relationships with power. I think it’s very successful” – Kuh Fei, Art critic, RTHK Arts News

This programme is co-presented and co-produced by WestK and Rooftop Productions, and is part of the WestK Creators series.

About WestK Creators
WestK Creators celebrates contemporary Hong Kong artists working across a variety of performing arts disciplines, contexts and forms. Encouraging exchange and collaboration, the series showcases innovative original productions, and nurtures experimentation and new perspectives for the Hong Kong performing arts scene.

Curated and produced by the Contemporary Performance Team of West Kowloon Performing Arts Division, WestK Creators promotes diverse creative voices and aesthetics, supports new work development, and facilitates the creation process from concept to stage, through residencies, research and development opportunities and work-in-progress presentations.

Co-presented and Co-produced by:

Adapted for the stage from Hong Kong web fiction author westwingmoon’s suspense and heartwarming novel Hell Post Office, Post Office in Hell is an immersive theatre production that invites the audience to take part in an existential meditation on life, death, and the forever goodbye.

This performance marks the first phase of the research and development of the project. A full-scale presentation is scheduled to take place at Freespace in September 2024. This programme is co-presented and co-produced by WestK and Reframe Theatre. It is part of the WestK Creators series.

About WestK Creators
WestK Creators celebrates contemporary Hong Kong artists working across a variety of performing arts disciplines, contexts and forms. Encouraging exchange and collaboration, the series showcases innovative original productions, and nurtures experimentation and new perspectives for the Hong Kong performing arts scene.

Curated and produced by the Contemporary Performance Team of West Kowloon Performing Arts Division, WestK Creators promotes diverse creative voices and aesthetics, supports new work development, and facilitates the creation process from concept to stage, through residencies, research and development opportunities and work-in-progress presentations.

Co-presented and Co-produced by:

In conjunction with the full stage performance of I am Tree, Artocrite Theater is holding a free pre-show book walk to give audiences a glimpse into the creative process behind the play.

Inspired by Han Kang’s The Vegetarian, I am Tree explores the fragile and complex relationships humans have with each other and nature. While working on the production, the artistic team also found parallels in Jean-Jacques Rousseau’s deeply moving work The Reveries of the Solitary Walker, which records the Genevan philosopher's thoughts in the last two years of his life, including issues of morality and humans’ relationship with nature.

For this event, participants are invited to freely walk or rest on the Freespace Terrace, where actors will read excerpts from The Reveries of the Solitary Walker. Through the book walk, the artistic team encourages participants to contemplate on Rousseau's thought process and philosophical ideas ahead of the performance in December.

I am Tree is part of the WestK Creators series, with its research and development supported by WestK. This programme is also part of the “Vennaissance” project by Artocrite Theater.

Artistic Team:
Producer: Coco Tam
Director: Birdy Wong Ching-yan
Actors: Birdy Wong Ching-yan, Raymond Wan Wai-ching, Caleb Chan Chun-leong
Dramaturgy: Caleb Chan Chun-leong
Stage Manager: Bignose Ng
Assistant Stage Manager: Jimmy Ng Chun-wai

How to Participate:
The session is free of charge and open to the public. Please fill in this online application form by 19 September 2023 (Tuesday). Successful applicants will receive an email confirmation on or before 21 September 2023 (Thursday).

[additional_button button_text="Apply Now" href="https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSefjtIZOMn14GqOYLlqKi212rXT4vlv8TImITVYpzR1cDUJfw/viewform" class="black" target="_blank" icon_background="#000" icon_color="#FFF" content_background="#000"]

About WestK Creators
WestK Creators celebrates contemporary Hong Kong artists working across a variety of performing arts disciplines, contexts and forms. Encouraging exchange and collaboration, the series showcases innovative original productions, and nurtures experimentation and new perspectives for the Hong Kong performing arts scene.

Curated and produced by the Contemporary Performance Team of West Kowloon Performing Arts Division, WestK Creators promotes diverse creative voices and aesthetics, supports new work development, and facilitates the creation process from concept to stage, through residencies, research and development opportunities and work-in-progress presentations.

About Venaissance
“Venaissance”, a portmanteau merging from two words: Vegetation and Renaissance, is the major programme series of Artocrite Theater. Introducing vegetation-inspired stories, the series explores the vulnerability of humans and the dilemmas in everyday life.  

Human and vegetation share a co-existence relationship in our daily lives. Numerous literatures and plays have used vegetation as a metaphor for humanity. Drawing inspiration from different plants and their distinct qualities, Artocrite Theater takes vegetation as the theme to question about human nature and our existence. 

Presenter:

Hong Kong Arts Development Council fully supports freedom of artistic expression. The views and opinions expressed in this project do not represent the stand of the Council.

Co-presenter:

Project Grant
“Venaissance” is financially supported by the Arts Capacity Development Funding Scheme of the Government of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region.

The content of this programme does not reflect the views of the Government of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region.

[ticketing_button button_text="Tickets" href="https://www.tickets.westkowloon.hk/en/event/PTZ01001542"]

In times of trouble, what can we learn from each other’s experience, how can we gain wisdom and can we find love in the midst?

In January this year, award-winning screen veteran Elaine Jin and musical theatre stars Margaret Cheung and Jordan Cheng explored loss and longing through a game of mahjong in the work-in-progress presentation of Hard Times. After half a year of feedback collection and evaluation, the team is back with a full-scale presentation this September that looks at suffering in a humorous and bittersweet light.

Moving to a bigger venue in The Box, director Edward Lam once again creates a highly experimental work. With a greater focus on the music element, Lam has invited Harris Ho to join the production as music director and compose several new pieces. Together with video projection and live music, the team hopes to share with the audience an innovative form of theatre that combines singing and acting.

Using intangible cues on stage, the performers are encouraged to lay bare their innermost feelings and life experience. They learn from each other, complement each other, and create an "organic theatre work" that is ephemeral but enduring in our memories.

This programme is co-presented and co-produced by WestK and Edward Lam Dance Theatre.

Artistic Team:
Director: Edward Lam
Performers: Elaine Jin Yam-ling, Margaret Cheung, Jordan Cheng Kwan-chi
Music Director: Harris Ho
Dramaturg: Hsu Yen-mei
Creative Coordinator: Ho Ting-wai
Sound and Music Designer: Chung Chak-ming
Scenography: Jonathan Wong*
Lighting Designer: Au Yeung Hon-ki
Art Director and Image Designer: Kary Kwok
Video Director and Editor: Darwin Ng
Production Manager: Joyi Tsang

*Appearance by kind permission of The Hong Kong Academy for Performing Arts

Key Visual Outfits: Brunello Cucinelli

Co-presented and Co-produced by:

Tickets for additional performances are available on the online ticketing system POPTICKET from 27 October 2023 (Friday) at 10:00am.

[additional_button button_text="Tickets" href="https://www.popticket.hk/impossible-trial-23" target="_blank"]

You will be redirected to POPTICKET.

Overview

The multi-award-winning Hong Kong production returns this year with the original star-studded cast

After a hugely successful premiere in September 2022, the original Hong Kong production The Impossible Trial – a musical returns for a highly anticipated rerun at the Xiqu Centre this year.

Conceived, created and staged by an all-star local team, the riveting tale of redemption showcases music by Leon Ko, lyrics by Chris Shum, script by Cheung Fei Fan and direction by Fong Chun Kit. The rerun also features the stunning original cast, recently recognised at the Hong Kong Drama Awards.

With a unique set that blends traditional and contemporary aesthetics and highlights the skills of staging director Ivanhoe Lam and scenographer Wong Yat Kwan, The Impossible Trial – a musical is a Hong Kong production not to be missed.

The Impossible Trial – a musical received multiple awards at the 2023 Hong Kong Drama Awards, including Best Production, Best Director, Best Original Music (Musical) and Best Lyrics.

This programme is commissioned by WestK, co-presented and co-produced by WestK and Hong Kong Repertory Theatre, with the Shun Hing Group 70th Anniversary as title sponsor.

Creative Team:
Composer and Musical Director: Leon Ko
Lyricist: Chris Shum
Playwright: Cheung Fei Fan
Director: Fong Chun Kit
Staging Director and Choreographer: Ivanhoe Lam
Scenographer: Wong Yat Kwan*
Co-choreographer: Lim Wei Wei
Band Leader: Anna Lo
Singing Coach: Lianna Tse
Set Designer: Bill Cheung
Costume Designer: Vanessa Suen Wing Kwan
Lighting Designer: Yeung Tsz Yan
Co-sound Designer: Can Ha, Ctrl Fre@k (Jeffrey Yue)
Cast: Lau Shau Ching, Jordan Cheng, Tunes Ting, Clinton Zhang, Rick Lau, Yau Ting Fai, Fung Chi Yau, Man Sui Hing, Kiki Cheung, ManMan Kwok, Vivian Chan, Adam Tang, Rick Cheung, Christopher Ying, Olga Chung, Eddy Au Yeung, Angus Chan, Dee To, Luk Ka Ki

*Appearance by kind permission of The Hong Kong Academy for Performing Arts

Title Sponsor:

Commissioned, Co-presented and Co-produced by:

Co-presented and Co-produced by:

Media Sponsors:

In 2024, TechBox showcases the work of artist and academic Ip Yuk-yiu, and explores the performance possibilities of game play with audience interaction. Full programme details to be announced soon.

About TechBox
TechBox is a collaborative platform established between WestK and the School of Theatre and Entertainment Arts at The Hong Kong Academy for Performing Arts. The platform brings together media artists, theatre designers, faculty members and students to explore new frontiers of technology and performance and devise experimental creations in a technological context.

In 2021, the opening programme art TALKS tech presented work by audio engineers, sound artists and artists specialising in digital kinetic sculptures and multimedia. Since 2022, TechBox has offered public presentation on the research and development process for creating technological works, and extended teaching content. The Travellers and The Listeners is the programme’s first full-scale production.

Co-presented and Co-produced by:

School of Theatre and Entertainment Arts, The Hong Kong Academy for Performing Arts