ENG-2007 — Page 447

Recreation, Sport and the Arts | 379

commissioned Cantonese opera programme The Theatrical Legacy of the Tang Dynasty and a Greater Pearl River Delta cultural exchange programme: A Showcase of Guangdong, Hong Kong and Macao Cantonese Opera Masters under The Great Reunion Cantonese Opera Series.

The LCSD is keen to work with local cultural organisations. It lent support to the Hong Kong Composers' Guild by playing host to the ISCM-ACL World Music Days 2007 in Hong Kong, an event in which over 200 composers and musicologists from more than 60 countries and regions took part.

The event provided an opportunity for showcasing the works of a number of Hong Kong composers, and major performing arts groups including the Hong Kong Chinese Orchestra, Hong Kong Philharmonic Orchestra and the Hong Kong Sinfonietta. Other musical highlights of the year included the production of Verdi's opera Aida by Opera Hong Kong which involved both local and visiting artists. Other local art groups which performed during the year included the City Chamber Orchestra of Hong Kong, the Wuji Plucked-string Ensemble, and the Windpipe Chinese Ensemble. Hong Kong was also treated to performances by the London Symphony Orchestra under the baton of Daniel Harding, the Encore Series, Jazz Up Series and A Cappella Series which featured renowned performers and virtuosi such as Sir James Galway (flute), Maria Joao Pires (piano), Carol Kidd (jazz vocal) and the Jacques Loussier Trio.

The vitality and creativity of Hong Kong artists were very apparent in the shows presented by local dance companies which included DanceArt HK, Y-Space, Manna Dance and Dancing Blue by Mui Cheuk-yin and Lee Chun-chow. Visiting groups which performed in Hong Kong during the year included Cloud Gate Dance Theatre of Taiwan, Moscow City Ballet, Slovak National Folklore Ballet, and Zhengzhou Song and Dance Theatre.

Local theatre companies were always in the forefront of Hong Kong's performing arts scene. The LCSD worked with the Hong Kong Federation of Drama Societies, Actors' Family, On and On Theatre Workshop, 7A Class Drama Group as well as a Playwright Scheme II guided by the Prospects Theatre featuring works by local playwrights. Two renowned theatre productions Teahouse by the Beijing People's Art Theatre and Proof by the Greenray Theatre from Taiwan were presented in support of the 6th Chinese Drama Festival in January. Alexander Pushkin's masterpiece Boris Godunov produced by the Chekhov International Theatre Festival from Russia offered a completely new experience to theatre-goers.

The Cantonese Opera Day held on the last Sunday of November reflected Hong Kong young people's interest in this traditional art form. Other genres of Chinese opera highlighted during the year included An Operatic Legacy — 'Four Generations of Kunqu Artists' Showcase Series, Shanghai Shaoxing Opera Group and Three Stylistic Schools of Peking Opera.

The LCSD also facilitates the holding of major local film events by providing the organisers with free venues and ticketing services. These events included the annual

!