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Recreation, Sport, Culture and the Arts
Hong Kong Philharmonic Orchestra
Recognised as Asia's foremost classical orchestra, the musicians present over 150 concerts every year featuring international and local conductors and soloists, and offer free programmes including the popular outdoor concert Symphony Under The Stars and educational activities for youngsters. During the year, more than 200,000 music lovers attended the events, including the successful conclusion of an epic four-year journey through Wagner's Ring Cycle. The live performances and CD recordings were well received by both audiences and critics.
Hong Kong Repertory Theatre
The company seeks to develop creative and diverse theatrical productions of Chinese and western works and local originals. Its 17 productions in 2018 included The Big Meal, Principle, An Unjust Good Fellow, and the Hong Kong International Black Box Festival co-presented with the WKCD. In a tour of Mainland cities, the company's Hu Xueyan, My Dear garnered six major awards at the Chinese Theatre Awards and was among the Top 10 Best Productions at the Beijing News Drama Awards.
Hong Kong Sinfonietta
This symphony orchestra is renowned for its innovative programming and audience development efforts. In 2018, it gave over 100 performances and organised the 1st Hong Kong International Conducting Competition. Apart from premiering new orchestral and chamber works, the company also presented a month-long crossover project, Notating Beauty That Moves, and released a CD of Cantonese musical The Passage Beyond in Concert.
Zuni Icosahedron
This is an experimental theatre company. Its 2018 theatre season, Theatre is Technology, included Experimental Naamyam Hong Kong - Blind Musician Dou Wan; Z/Z Twin Lab, a cooperative piece with the Zurich University of the Arts; Hong Kong Belt-Road City-to-City Cultural Exchange Conference 2018 - Asian Strategy; and The Interrupted Dream and Heavenly Palace in One Belt and One Road Experimental Theatre.
Culture and Arts Presentations
The LCSD presents quality cultural programmes throughout the year. In 2018, more than 330,000 people attended 932 performances featuring local and visiting artists and arts groups. Visiting musicians and groups included Magdalena Kožená and the Basel La Cetra Baroque Orchestra, Paco Peña and Friends, Dang Thai Son, Ton Koopman and the Amsterdam Baroque Choir, the Artemis Quartet, Evgeny Kissin, the Kodály Quartet, Orchestra dell'Accademia Nazionale di Santa Cecilia - Roma, Pablo Ziegler Latin Jazz Trio and Ron Carter Trio. Visiting dance programmes included Akram Khan's Giselle by the English National Ballet and Zaguán & Alento by Ballet Nacional de España.
Specially curated programmes provide performance platforms for local and visiting artists and opportunities for cultural exchange. In 2018, these programmes included Our Music Talents, City Hall Virtuosi, Jazz Marathon, Jazz Up, Music Delight, Guangdong Music, New Force in
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