These events have now been completed.
In close collaboration with the Hong Kong Arts Festival, the British Council supports the Festival Plus programme. This year, the Council has brought together specialists from the diverse UK representation at the 2008 Festival to offer you exclusive moments with artists from the National Theatre of Great Britain and London Philharmonic Choir and pianist Joanna MacGregor
National Theatre of Great Britain - Workshop & Talk
The actors from the National Theatre of Great Britain’s production of Chatroom + Citizenship came to the British Council on Friday 15 February 2008 to host a workshop and talk based on the issues covered in the plays.
Around 30 locals secondary students participated in the morning workshop From Page to Stage, where after some lively warm up exercises the actors demonstrated how a scene from Chatroom could have very different meanings dependent on the characterisation of the roles. The students were then split into groups to direct and act out a scene from Citizenship, using a characterisation of their choice. Each of the groups brought a new perspective to the text, even surprising some of the National Theatre actors with new insights into the play. Feedback from participants was very positive: “Excellent & inspiring experience indeed”; “[The workshop was] a lot of fun, interacting and learning from the actors”; “Loved it! More please!”.
The afternoon’s Dialogue with the team: Beyond Chatroom + Citizenship was a great opportunity for local audiences to discuss with the actors some of the issues covered in the plays, as well as to hear about their experiences of life on tour and performing in Hong Kong.
London Philharmonic Choir - Open rehearsal
Topic: The Art of Choral Conducting
Date: 20 Feb 2008 (Wed)
Time: 7.30 - 9.00p.m.
Venue: Concert Hall, Hong Kong Cultural Centre
Neville Creed, Artistic Director of London Philharmonic Choir will lead an open rehearsal with the choir and their accompanist Iain Farrington in preparation for the Festival. There will be an Q&A session at the end of the rehearsal.
Joanna MacGregor - Meet-the-Artists Session
Date: 9 Mar 2008 (Sun)
Time: 2.00 - 4.00p.m.
Venue: Dance Studio 1, Hong Kong Academy for Performing Arts
Internationally renowned pianist Joanna MacGregor will share stories and experiences from her world-wide performances, and offer insights into the eclectic repertoire of music that she performs. Her lecture looks at some of the creative ways very different music can be juxtaposed in performance, drawing from examples as diverse as a multimedia project about premature birth, Bach's Art of Fugue with Moondog, and Renaissance music set alongside contemporary music. She'll be performing music ranging from John Cage, Howard Skempton, Bach and Piazzolla, to Japanese composer Somei Satoh and some of her own music from the Chinese dance/visuals/music project, Crossborder. This is a great opportunity to meet one of the most unique and accomplished young pianists alive today – don’t miss it!
Free admission tickets are now available from the Festival information counters at the Hong Kong City Hall and Cultural Centre on a first-come, first-served basis.
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