The 28th Macao Arts Festival (MAF), organized by the Cultural Affairs Bureau, will be held from 28 April to 31 May, taking “Heterotopia” as theme and establishing, through texts, stories, images, music and imagery, a diversified space away from reality yet closely connected to it, bringing new possibilities to existence. This edition comprises 25 extraordinary shows and exhibitions, which, combined with the outreach programme, total of over 100 activities, leading the audience to explore various possibilities of space by means of different art manifestations.
In “Thematic Highlights: Fantasies of Different Spaces” and opening the event, this edition of the MAF presents, the show Play and Play: An Evening of Movement and Music, a reinterpretation of Schubert and Ravel’s classics by internationally acclaimed North-American modern dance company Bill T. Jones / Arnie Zane; the same 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 point of view. On the 110th anniversary of Chinese theatre, the Shaanxi People’s Art Theatre takes to the stage a production of magic realism of 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.
The MAF seeks to broaden several art perspectives. The soundscape theatre play Back to the Catastrophic Typhoon of 1874, which original novel was awarded at the Macao Literature Competition, recreates daily life sounds in a real life space allowing the audience to explore their own imaginative spaces. Remote Macao uses sound effects to take participants in a journey from the past up to the present through the city’s streets and alleys; The Nether portrays the seemingly limitless dividing line between the real and virtual worlds; the ground-breaking Miss Revolutionary Idol Berserker offers viewers a mind-blowing experience of Japan. Double Bill byHiroaki Umeda is a new work developed in cooperation with local dancers, as well as a solo piece that breaks down the human body’s barriers. Emerging Portuguese choreographer Marco da Silva Ferreira presents the ballet Hu(r)mano, while Aneckxander: a tragic autobiography of the body re-examines one’s own body through a fusion of acrobatics and body language.
Family programmes are also catered for all ages to take part in the Arts Festival. Rusty Nails & Other Heroes makes use of different materials and multimedia to create an amusing theatre of objects; the Performing Arts Gala gathers an array of performing arts and injects vitality in the community through the arts; in addition, the children’s musical Metamorphosis under Starry Night and the children’s theatre reliant solely on hands and clay dolls A Mano further feed the spirit through the arts.
Traditional arts are passed from generation to generation. The National Peking Opera Company presents an abridged adaptation of the classic Lady Anguo; the Macao Kaifong Cantonese Opera Juvenile’s Troupe takes to the stage the Cantonese opera “The Tale of Lady General”; the Dóci Papiaçám di Macau Drama Group returns with another look at current events in Stormy Luck; and Chu Chan Wa and Macao Cantonese opera actors bring the Cantonese opera classic The Butterfly Lovers. Additionally, the Macao Orchestra presents the concert Resonance through Space-Time while the Macao Chinese Orchestra performs “The Soul of Macao – Peking Opera Concert. These and other shows, together with the exhibitions “The Art of Zhang Daqian”, “Constellation – Works by Nicolas Delaroche” and “Debris – Works by Alexandre Farto aka Vhils”, broaden artistic experiences, in different and varied ways,.
Tickets for the 28th MAF are available at the Macau Ticketing Network from 10am on 12 March (Sunday). Reservations can be made by phone or online from 12pm onwards on the same day. On the first day of ticket sales, each person can purchase a maximum of ten tickets per performance, except for the performances Rusty Nails & Other Heroes, Metamorphosis under Starry Night andA Mano, a maximum of four tickets per person. Early bird discounts of 30%, subject to certain criteria, are available from 12 to 19 March and a 20% discount will be offered from 20 March onwards. Members of the public who purchase their tickets with a BOC Credit Card or BOC card will receive a 30% discount on tickets for the opening and closing performances, Play and Play: An Evening of Movement and Music and The Seagull, as well as a 20% discount on all other shows. A 20% discount on tickets for all shows is also available for purchases with MasterCard, Visa Card or UnionPay Card from ICBC (Macau), BCM Bank, or OCBC Wing Hang Bank. A 50% discount will also be offered to holders of Macao Senior Citizen Card or Disability Assessment Registration Card, limited to one ticket per person. For each purchase over MOP800 (net price after discount), purchasers may receive one discount voucher to enjoy exclusive offers at MGM’s selected restaurants and spa (available while stocks last). Air Macau customers can enjoy a 20% discount on ticket purchases at the ticketing outlets by presenting the respective boarding pass (flight code NX) within 7 days upon their arrival in Macao. There is also a special ticket arrangement for the show Remote Macao. For more information, please refer to the MAF’s booklet.
This edition of the MAF has the support of the Macao Government Tourism Office, TDM – Teledifusão de Macau, Air Macau and MGM. The Macao Arts Festival website: www.icm.gov.mo/fam; email: fam@icm.gov.mo. For enquiries regarding the programme, please contact the Cultural Affairs Bureau through tel. 8399 6699 during office hours. 24-hour ticket reservation hotline: (Macao) 2855 5555; (Hong Kong) 2380 5083; (Mainland China) 139 269 11111; online ticket reservation is available at www.macauticket.com.
The 28th MAF’s press conference was held on 6 March, at 3pm at The Vista, MGM. The press conference was attended by the President of the Cultural Affairs Bureau, Leung Hio Ming; the Director of the Macao Government Tourism Office, Maria Helena de Senna Fernandes; the Vice-President of the Cultural Affairs Bureau, Kent Ieong Chi Kin; the Chief Executive Officer and Executive Director of MGM China Holdings Limited, Grant Bowie; the President of Executive Committee and Chief Executive Officer of Air Macau Company Limited, Chen Hong; the Deputy General Manager of Bank of China Limited (Macau Branch), Ip Sio Kai; Acting Manager of Communications & Multimedia Department of Teledifusão de Macau S.A., Cheong Sio Fun; the Acting Head of the Department of Cultural Events, Paula Lei; and the Acting Head of the Division of Performing Arts, Tong Pui I.