The Birth of Stone Child

The legend of Stony Kid originated from Reinforcements from Shatuo, one of the ‘Eighteen Plays of Cantonese Opera', the standard orchestral repertoire. Taking the directorial helm, Wong Hoksing gave it his own twist and flavour by drawing on his acting days as a wenwusheng (artist playing civil and military male roles). Shunning an all-song-and-dance revue in favour of fist-and-leg actions, Wong set the stage for opera maestros Lam Kar-sing, Fung Wong Nui, Lan Chi Pak and Sek Yin-tsi to showcase their artistry. While long-shots give a panoramic view of acrobatic fight scenes, fast-paced editing imparts dramatic intensity and emotional emphasis to each movement. Equally exemplary is the scene featuring the showdown between ‘Thirteenth Imperial Protector' Lee Chun-hau (Lam Kar-sing) and his competition in contention for the title of Grand Marshal. Also not to be missed is Sek Yin-tsi, the martial artist extraordinaire who first adapted Reinforcements from Shatuo, a paichangxi (standardised popular plays) ensemble into a xiaowu (young military male) signature play in theatre.

Date	Time	Venue
18/3/2017 (Sat)	7:30pm	Cinema, Hong Kong Film Archive

The contents of the programme do not represent the views of the presenter. The presenter reserves the right to change the programme should unavoidable circumstances make it necessary.