RECREATION, SPORTS AND THE ARTS
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The company presented five productions in 1994 - two new dance dramas, one revival, a dance showcase of the minority nationalities of China and a musical in conjunction with the Hong Kong Dance Company, the Hong Kong Repertory Theatre and the Hong Kong Chinese Orchestra. A total of 26 performances were staged, attracting 26 680 people. In addition, the company gave free performances and lecture-demonstrations in schools and community arts centres to 43 414 people.
Chung Ying Theatre Company
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The Chung Ying Theatre Company stepped into its 15th year by launching an innovative season composed entirely of locally-commissioned plays.
The local works staged during the year included Killer Instinct for the Hong Kong Arts Festival; Studio Shorts '94, comprising four short plays created by company members; Peeping Into Life for the Hong Kong Arts Centre's Climatic Shorts '94; and The School and I. A highlight was the family musical Old Master Q, produced for the Urban Council's Festival of Asian Arts.
Theatre-in-education programmes and school touring continued to be an important part of the company's activities. The popular story-telling and story-building programmes were again presented in the Regional Council's International Children's Arts Festival. The company also continued to hold workshops for teachers and young people.
City Contemporary Dance Company
To celebrate its 15th birthday in 1994, the City Contemporary Dance Company (CCDC) staged two special dance programmes featuring new commissions and past dance classics. For the productions, under the overall title Six Dance Brocade, seven famous musicians from Japan, Taiwan and Hong Kong were invited to provide live music.
The CCDC and its sister company, the Guangdong Modern Dance Company, brought together over 30 dancers in a full-length new version of the dance production Nine Songs, which toured Beijing, Guangzhou and Hong Kong.
Two encouraging experimental creations by CCDC dancers during the year were Motion I & II. Other presentations included Open Party and The Pink.
Dance educational development continued to be an important part of the company's activities. A second company called CCDC II was formed to promote dance education and appreciation. More outreach programmes were also organised for students. Apart from its evening dance school, CCDC organised modern dance performance workshops in 15 schools in the New Territories which culminated in a finale performance entitled 94 Dancing in the Sun by over 170 students.
Hong Kong Ballet
The Hong Kong Ballet enjoyed a challenging year with seven productions, including four full-length ballets: A Mid-Summer Night's Dream, La Fille Mal Gardee, a revival of Giselle and the ever-popular The Nutcracker for the Christmas season. The company participated in the Fourth Chinese Arts Festival in Lanzhou, China in August, and made its début in Beijing in September. It also featured in the Urban Council's Festival of Asian Arts, with a tribute to the outstanding Asian-American choreographer and former associate artistic director of the Washington Ballet, the late Choo-San Goh, in a joint programme with the Singapore Dance