Hong Kong Chapter II
# Student pass holders must join the on-site waiting queue, and admission will be subject to seat availability.
Hong Kong Works
Danger Back to Jazz: Fountain Collective Live Improvisation
Fountain Collective
In a city defined by its restless energy, a collective of artists gathers to embrace the unknown.
Spurred by a mission to “bring danger back to jazz”, Fountain Collective ventures out from the safety of sheet music to transform the stage into a microcosm of urban vitality, where the only certainty is the pulse of the moment.
Join us in exploring the unstoppable spirit of life through the lens of avant-garde jazz.
Art Form: Music
Fountain de Chopin
Established in 2021, Fountain de Chopin (翻騰三周半) is a dynamic Hong Kong-based jazz collective and promotion platform. The collective is dedicated to demystifying jazz and rooting it within the community through accessible performances, educational workshops, and high-energy jam sessions.
Fountain Collective
At the heart of the platform is Fountain Collective, an avant-garde ensemble formed by seven core musicians: Nelson Fung (bass), Bowen Li (piano), Michael Chan (guitar), Dean Li (drums), Brian Cheung (saxophone), Timothy Wan (saxophone), and Gold Mountain (rapper/GM).
Inspired by Marcel Duchamp’s boundary-pushing artwork, Fountain, the group emerged during the pandemic to challenge musical conventions. While the members possess rigorous traditional training, they champion a philosophy of "bringing danger back to jazz". Their style is defined by free improvisation, genre fluidity, and philosophical risk, embracing jazz as a “multiplayer game” and a medium of absolute interpretive freedom.
Traditional & Contemporary Physical Training Research SHOWCASE
Théâtre de la Feuille
Beyond classics and between the wings, can the ancient mountains and rivers be revived?
Théâtre de la Feuille’s “Traditional and Contemporary Physical Training Research Programme” consolidated years of physical training, creative development, and experience gained from the previous programme “From 0 to International Tours.” The company invited masters from diverse traditional performing arts to serve as instructors, including practitioners of Chinese martial arts, Hong Kong bamboo sculpting, Indian Kutiyattam Theatre, puppetry and object Theatre, African traditional dance, as well as Japan Nihon Buyo and Kyogen.
The nine-month training and research programme culminated in the production Book of Mountains and Seas – The Fates of Mountains and Rivers, a reimagining of the eponymous Chinese classic that blends geography, mythology, travel writing, shamanic texts, and tales of the beast. Premiering in September 2025 and completing its first overseas tour in March 2026 at the Tokyo KANZE Noh Theater, the production employs contemporary multidisciplinary physical theatre to explore the natural harmony between heaven, earth, and humanity.
This Traditional & Contemporary Physical Training Research SHOWCASE is a combination of video and excerpt performances that highlight the essence of Théâtre de la Feuille’s ongoing performing arts research programme. It invites participants to explore how the body can serve as a fulcrum to connect tradition and contemporary arts, as well as Eastern and Western performance practices – ultimately inspiring a deeper inquiry into life.
Art Form: Drama
Théâtre de la Feuille
Théâtre de la Feuille is a Hong Kong-based organisation founded in Paris in 2010. The company aims to investigate the purity of the body, nurture the mind, and enrich the self. Its practice is rooted in tenacious curiosity, creating works that connect audience to artists, reflecting humanity back onto itself. The company has undertaken extensive tours in several countries across Europe, America, and Asia.
Remarks
*Book of Mountains and Seas – The Fates of Mountains and Rivers is co-presented and co-produced by WestK Performing Arts and Théâtre de la Feuille, and is part of the WestK Creators series.**"Book of Mountains and Seas – Traditional and Contemporary Physical Training Research Programme" is financially supported by the Arts Capacity Development Funding Scheme of the Government of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region.+
+The content of these activities does not reflect the views of the Government of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region.
Nocturnes: A Dialogue Between Music and Cinematic Art
Fung Lam
Nocturnes is a wordless love letter to Hong Kong, emerging from the first-ever collaboration between composer Fung Lam and photographer–director Wing Shya.
Using only exquisite music and cinematic visuals, Nocturnes is a study of the expression of emotion and thought. Its non-narrative structure opens a space for audiences to explore their own relationship with Hong Kong and find solace in its beauty.
Art Form: Multidisciplinary Arts
Fung Lam
Classically trained as a composer, Fung Lam has established an international presence with performances at the BBC Proms and in many of the world’s venues, including Carnegie Hall in New York, Konzerthaus Berlin, Sydney Opera House, Royal Albert Hall, and London’s Southbank Centre. Described by The Independent as a composer with “a distinctive voice,” he is the first Hong Kong composer to be commissioned by the BBC, a milestone in the global recognition of Hong Kong’s creative voices.
Lam’s catalogue includes more than ten orchestral works, including three BBC commissions and two for the Hong Kong Philharmonic Orchestra (HK Phil). His Endless Forms, premiered by the BBC Symphony Orchestra at the BBC Proms in 2012, received critical acclaim; the Evening Standard wrote “Lam, working with a carefully constructed minimum of material, shapes his musical world with dreamy individuality.”
As the HK Phil’s Robert H. N. Ho Family Foundation Composer-in-Residence (2013–14), Lam composed Quintessence to mark the orchestra’s 40th anniversary. Under conductor Jaap van Zweden, the work was performed in Hong Kong and on tours across Europe (2015), China (2016), and Asia/Australia (2017).
His recent cross-disciplinary projects include Yet Another Dream (2021), his portrait concert with visual artist and designer anothermountainman; Nocturnes (2022), a music-and-film collaboration with photographer–director Wing Shya; Hyperreality (2023), an installation and concert co-created with media artist Keith Lam for the Hong Kong Arts Festival; and Dimension Flâneur (2025), a cross-disciplinary performance at the East Kowloon Cultural Centre, also with Keith Lam.
Lam holds a doctorate in composition from the University of Sussex and received the Young Artist Award 2011 from the Hong Kong Arts Development Council. In 2017, he was awarded the Certificate of Commendation from the Secretary for Home Affairs, HKSAR.
Wing Shya
Wing Shya is a Hong Kong photographer, director and graphic designer. He has worked with various musicians and artistes on music video and photo shooting projects.
History Play (Excerpt)
Rooftop Productions
History Play is a new piece of music theatre from Hong Kong that treats Shakespeare’s Richard II not as a dusty classic, but as a controversial, intercultural interrogation of power.
Rooftop Productions presents a contemporary song theatre work that crashes Elizabethan history into contemporary culture. We follow a young Shakespeare – an "upstart" poet without a university education – as he navigates the paranoia of Elizabeth I’s final years, a time defined by state censorship, recurring plagues, and the shadow of the gallows.
Paid by the Earl of Essex to stage a play about the downfall of a king, Shakespeare finds his poetic genius entangled in the politics of the time. Part historical epic, part eclectic musical, History Play is a genre-blending tapestry where the score leaps from Cantonese Opera to Metal, Madrigals, and Rap. The work asks a biting question: was Shakespeare a visionary out of his time, or a strategic survivor who learned how to write within the rules?
Following a successful premiere as a staged reading in Hong Kong in October 2025, History Play won Script of the Year at the IATC(HK) Critics Awards 2026. This bilingual production is available in both English and Cantonese.
Art Form: Drama
Rooftop Productions
Rooftop Productions promotes the development of contemporary, multidisciplinary theatre performance, training, and multimedia technology. The company’s works integrate a wide range of theatre techniques into its creative process, from live music to live video and even live interaction with mobile apps.
The company also encourages cultural exchange, with an aim to increase both local and international recognition of Hong Kong theatre.
Rooftop Productions was founded in 2014 by Ivor Houlker and Michelle Li, two performing artists who trained in London and have worked throughout Europe. In 2022, they received the Award for Young Artist (Drama) from the 16th Hong Kong Arts Development Awards.
Rooftop Productions’ recent works have won numerous local theatre awards and nominations. Their recent co-production with WestK, Songs of Innocence and Experience, received the Best Original Music (Drama) and Outstanding Production of the Year at the 33rd Hong Kong Drama Awards, as well as the Scenography of the Year Award and nomination for Best Director at the 2024 IATC (HK) Critics’ Awards. Their documentary theatre work Testimony was awarded Best Yearly Performance and Best Scenography at the 2019 IATC (HK) Critics’ Award. Earlier works were awarded Outstanding Scenography at the 8th, 9th, 11th, and 12th Hong Kong Theatre Libre awards.
Introduction to Philip Glass x Leonard Cohen: The Book of Longing, an original Hong Kong production
ANIMA Ensemble
The Book of Longing is an immersive musical theatre experience that bridges Leonard Cohen’s poetic lyrics and Philip Glass’s iconic compositions.
Set within a Zen garden, the work blends music, theatre, movement, visual art, and multimedia projection, brought to life by a cast of 15 performers and an interdisciplinary production crew. Four solo singers embody Cohen. A movement artist personifies longing. A sandpainting artist visualises the passage of time. Together, they create a poetic journey of desire, introspection, and transformation.
This original Hong Kong production, praised for its expressive clarity and innovation, invites audiences into a contemplative world where Eastern aesthetics meet Western musical minimalism.
Art Form: Music
ANIMA Ensemble
Founded in 2023 by conductor Vivian Ip and violinist Nina Wong, ANIMA Ensemble represents a bold new force in contemporary music-making. Rooted in the belief that sound is a primordial language, the ensemble is committed to translating and transmitting its expressive power through adventurous programming and artistic innovation. The name “ANIMA” – Latin for “soul,” “breath”, and “life force” – reflects the ensemble’s mission to connect ancient artistic impulses with modern creative expression.
ANIMA Ensemble specialises in contemporary chamber opera, musical theatre, and chamber music, curating interdisciplinary experiences that engage audiences on intellectual, emotional, and spiritual levels. Philip Glass x Leonard Cohen: The Book of Longing premiered in May 2024 at Freespace, WestK with support from the Hong Kong Arts Development Council. The production received critical acclaim for its expressive clarity and imaginative staging; Hong Kong critic Johnny Lau noted: “High-calibre artistic sensibility has made a comeback, and Hong Kong now stands on an international level.”
The ensemble has since expanded its international footprint, marking a significant milestone with its debut at Carnegie Hall and further enriching its artistic development as Ensemble in Residence at Rutgers University.
The ANIMA Quartet, a core group from the ensemble, has also appeared in performances in partnership with the Macao Contemporary Music Association, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, and Pallas Piano Academy. It participated in the premiere of the Chinese–Western opera Sleepless Moon at the Xiqu Centre in November 2024.
Through its dedication to artistic exploration, collaboration, and community engagement, ANIMA Ensemble continues to shape a dynamic and forward-looking presence in the contemporary music landscape.
Remarks
- Free seating.
- Registered participants are required to arrive and be seated at least 15 minutes before the scheduled programme start time. Seats will be held until the scheduled start time; any unoccupied seats at that time will be released to standby attendees.
- Programmes are subject to change without prior notice. HKPAX reserves the right to final decision regarding programme arrangements.
- Please note that some seats for this programme may have the sight line partially blocked.
