5/5 ( Sat ) 2:30pm

Huangmei Opera – Lyrical Theatre from Southern Anhui

Huangmei Opera in Hong Kong enjoyed its heyday years ago. Even though it has been on a decline ever since, the natural charm of its singing, which came from its rural background of Huangmei in Hubei province, remains an attractive feature worthy of our study. This talk will take you to Anqing in the south of Anhui province, where Huangmei Opera is still thriving today, to find out more about this regional operatic form.

Speaker : Chen Shu ( Critic of Chinese Traditional Theatre )

AC1, Level 4, Administration Building, Hong Kong Cultural Centre

12/5 ( Sat ) 2:30pm

Gezi Opera – Theatre of the Taiwan People△

The vernacular theatrical genre of Gezi Opera has a ubiquitous presence in Taiwan. It can be found in the makeshift stages in the rural areas or the proper auditorium of urban theatres. It can be seen and heard on radio and the screens large or small. What is the driving force behind its popularity? You will hear about it in this talk.

Speakers :

Wang Weimin ( Artistic Director of Hong Kong Chinese Arts Promotion Centre ) , Tsai Tsan Huang ( Assistant Professor & Deputy Director of The Chinese Music Archive, Department of Music, The Chinese University of Hong Kong )

AC1, Level 4, Administration Building, Hong Kong Cultural Centre

19/5 ( Sat ) 2:30pm

The Oral Performing Art of ‘Drum Songs’

Guqu, or ‘drum songs’, refers generally to narrative singing in northern China. In a performance, the storyteller would speak and sing alternately throughout the narration while accompanying himself or herself on a drum, and occasionally a pair of small crescent-shaped finger cymbals and a clapper to punctuate the narration. This talk will introduce the various types of ‘drum songs’ and describe the charming features that have sustained them as ‘gems of Chinese sung music’.

Speaker : Jason Lau ( Ethnic music researcher )

AC1, Level 4, Administration Building, Hong Kong Cultural Centre

26/5 ( Sat ) 2:30pm

Qinqiang – Clapper Opera in Northwestern China

Chinese traditional theatre has been summed up as ‘Liuzi Opera in the east, Kunqu in the south, Clapper Opera in the West, and Yiyangqiang in the North’. In this talk, we will explore the oldest and most representative of Clapper Opera in Shanxi and Shaanxi – Qinqiang, trace its cultural lineage and examine its outstanding features.

Speaker : Chen Shu

AC1, Level 4, Administration Building, Hong Kong Cultural Centre

2/6 ( Sat ) 2:30pm

Gan Opera – Mainstream Theatre from Jiangxi△

Jiangxi is the home of yiyangqiang, one of the four representative styles of singing during the Ming Dynasty (1368-1644), and also the area that conglomerated various types of vocal theatre during the Ming and Qing period. Through incorporating other vocal and theatrical nutrients such as luantan, pihuang, kunqu and qinqiang with yiyangqiang, Gan Opera has become a mainstream theatrical form from Jiangxi.

Speaker : Wang Weimin

AC2, Level 4, Administration Building, Hong Kong Cultural Centre