Season II In Progress

After the success of the performance of Emerging Choreographers Series I, Taking Off, on 19 and 20 October 2007, rehearsals for Season II of the Series started immediately, in which 5 emerging choreographers, Lai Tak-wai, Jo Leung, Anthony Suen, Chloe Wong, and Wu Yi-san, began creating their new works.

By the end of December 2007, the central concepts of the 5 works had been developed, and review sessions were held on 28 December for the choreographers to show their works-in-progress. Besides the project’s Mentors, leading Hong Kong choreographer Willy Tsao also attended the reviews, and discussed the works with emerging choreographers. After the discussions, the emerging choreographers will be busy fine tuning their choreographies, and will present their exciting new works on 16 and 17 February 2008 at the Theatre of Sheung Wan Civic Centre.

Please visit the blog where future posts will introduce each of the 5 emerging choreographers and their new works.

Photo Exhibition

A photo exhibition for Emerging Choreographers Series I is now taking place at the Painter's Corner in the Lobby of the Hong Kong Academy for Performing Arts, until 17 October. Most of the photos were taken from the rehearsals for the project. Come take a look!

Programme Plus (Free Administration)

The Emerging Choreographers Series also organizes some free programmes for the public, including:

Lecture I “Breaking Tradition”
by Mui Check-yin, Chan Tan & Justyne Li
Date: 7 Oct
Time: 7:30 pm
Venue: Hong Kong Cultural Centre AC1 (4/F Administration Building)


Lecture II “Videography in Choreography”
by Koala Yip, Cody Choi and Kwok Ka Yuen
Date: 14 Oct
Time: 7:30pm
Venue: Hong Kong Cultural Centre AC1 (4/F Administration Building)


Photo Exhibition
Date: 11-17 Oct
Venue: HKAPA Painter’s Corner

More Photos of Rehearsals

For more photos, please click to www.popa-gala.net. Find "Emerging Choreographers Series" under "Title of Work".

More Photos of Cody in Matthew Bourne's Swan Lake

Rehearsal Photos of Kwok Ka Yuen's "City and the Self"

Rehearsal photos of Kwok Ka Yuen's choreography for Emerging Choreographers Series "City and the Self" are displayed in www.popa-gala.net. The photos are taken by photographer Jesse Clockwork. Just click into the site, chose "title of work" and then "Review (Ka Yuen)" (currently is in the 3rd page of "title of work"). Please take a look and comments.

Emerging Choreographer Cody Choi Ka Lok

The first Emerging Choreographer that we are going to introduce is Cody Choi Ka-lok. Possibly a new name to many Hong Kong dance audiences, Cody is one of the most experienced Hong Kong dancers on the international stage.

A graduate from Hong Kong Academy for Performing Arts, Cody continued his dance training at Laban Centre in London, and joined the Centre’s Transitions Dance Company. He then built a career in Britain, and has just finished 3 seasons of world tours with Matthew Bourne's Swan Lake (New Adventures) to Australia, France, Italy, Greece, Japan, Koera, Russia, US, and UK. In England, he also worked with De Vlaamse Opera, English National Opera, Royal National Theatre, American Dance Festival, Chinese Culture Center London, The UK Chinese Acrobatics Co, and Lamat Dance (contemporary & flamenco dance), as well as choreographers such as Matthew Bourne, Arthur Pita, Neville Campbell, Saju Hari, Boi Sakti, and Sinman Yiu.

After dancing internationally for 7 years, Cody returned to Hong Kong in late July, and took off with his choreography for the Emerging Choreographers Series, right after he cleared the Airport. Within a month, he has been interviewed by the South China Morning Post, and in the article published on 28 August, titled “Re-enter, Stage Left”, written by David Phair, he told the journalist: “ I love the speed of the city. I love going to Causeway Bay or Mong Kok, walking around and feeling the energy. I find it gives me the energy to push myself and it helps me to formulate ideas. There are so many different things happening.”

It is exciting to see what Cody will bring Hong Kong audience for his Hong Kong choreographic debut, for which he will also perform.

Cody’s web site: www.codychoidance.com

Where is the new generation of HK choreographers?

“… Willy Tsao and Pun Siu-fai introduced me as a newcomer. That was in 1995 but it’s 2004 and I am still seen as the young one. Actually it’s the same group of people who are still working as independent artists. Where is the new generation?”

In an interview by Professor Susan Street, former Hong Kong Academy for Performing Arts Dean of Dance, for the book Why They Dance, Hong Kong choreographer Daniel Yeung made this observation about the situation of Hong Kong choreographers. The same question was raised when 16 Hong Kong established choreographers choreographed and performed in My Life as a Dancer for Hong Kong Arts Festival 2007. Among these 16 Choreographers, Daniel Young, who was over 40, was still the ‘youngest’ one.

Seeing the problem, Hong Kong Arts Development Council commissioned Hong Kong Dance Alliance to organize a project for the next generation of choreographers, which became the Emerging Choreographers Series.

To help ensure the project will help the development of up-coming choreographers, the project invited 6 established choreographers to be Curators/Mentors, to select suitable participants and to mentor them. After proposal submission and interviews, 9 emerging choreographers were selected to create new works for the project.

Series I Choreographers are now busily creating and rehearsing their new works, and will present them on 19 and 20 October 2007. This blog will introduce them one by one in coming posts.