28th Macao Arts Festival Launches in Late April
The 28th MAF and outreach programme comprise over 100 activities (Photo provided by Cultural Affairs Bureau)
Organized by the Cultural Affairs Bureau, and supported by Macao Government Tourism Office, Teledifusão de Macau (TDM), Air Macau and MGM, the 28th Macao Arts Festival (MAF) will be held from 28th April to 31st May, and adopts 'Heterotopia' as its theme. This year, MAF comprises 25 shows and exhibitions, which, combined with the outreach programme, total over 100 activities, encouraging audiences to explore the various possibilities of space by means of different art manifestations.
An Evening of Movement and Music opens the Festival
In 'Thematic Highlights: Fantasies of Different Spaces' and opening the event, this edition of the MAF presents An Evening of Movement and Music, a reinterpretation of Schubert and Ravel's classics by North American modern dance company Bill T. Jones / Arnie Zane; the company also presents the hypnotizing performance A Letter to My Nephew. The closing show The Seagull, one of Russian author Anton Chekov's masterpieces, is performed by the Reykjavik City Theatre, which moves the plot from a Russian country estate to Iceland to explore human nature from a unique perspective.
On the 110th anniversary of Chinese theatre, the Shaanxi People's Art Theatre takes to the stage to perform the classic Westland Feuds, while the Comuna de Pedra Arts and Cultural Association presents Songs of Migrants, revealing memories of local migrants and an important part of local history.
MAF also presents a number of local plays such as Back to the Catastrophic Typhoon of 1874, the original novel of which was awarded at the Macao Literature Competition, The Nether portrays the seemingly limitless dividing line between the real and virtual worlds, while programmes like Rusty Nails & Other Heroes, the Performing Arts Gala, A Mano and Metamorphosis Under Starry Night cater to all ages.
Arts accessibility services
The MAF outreach programme will invite the famous Hong Kong expert in Japanese culture, Kengo, to lecture on 'The Untold Secrets of Japan - Kengo's Talk on Japanese Culture,' while. 'One Day! Cantonese Opera' reveals in-depth knowledge of the performing techniques of Cantonese Opera, texts and costumes. The literary epic Westland Feuds leaps from the pages of the book to the stage and, in a pre-show talk, local playwright Lawrence Lei will share some of its highlights with the audience. Dutch TAMTAM objektentheater hosts 'Waste in Transformation - Creative Craft Classes for Parents and Children,' encouraging children to recycle used materials.
For this edition of MAF, seven outstanding films have been selected for screening in several venues around Macau. In order to allow people with visual and hearing impairments to enjoy the arts without barriers, arts accessibility services will be made available for several shows, including accessible captions and sign language interpretation services at the screenings of My Way and Little Prince. The children's musical Metamorphosis Under Starry Night will also feature Cantonese audio description for theatre services.
For more information about MAF, please visit www.icm.gov.mo/en. 24-hour ticket reservation hotline: Macao (853) 2855 5555; Hong Kong (852) 2380 5083; Mainland China (86) 1392 6911 111; online ticket reservation is available at www.macauticket.com/TicketWeb/Default.aspx?c=en-us.