“A Revival of Tam Lan-hing’s Celebrated Repertoire in Cantonese Opera” to be staged in September

     A group of veteran Cantonese opera stars will feature in "A Revival of Tam Lan-hing's Celebrated Repertoire in Cantonese Opera" and perform three remarkable classic plays in September. The works are namely "The Impetuous Generals", "The Silver Dragon and the Golden Phoenix" and "Romance at the Peach Blossom Lakeside".
 
     Tam Lan-hing is a highly esteemed figure in Cantonese opera and a versatile performer. She started acting under the guidance of her elder sister at a very young age. Gaining the reputation as "The Queen of Melodies", she started as the "fa dan" (female lead) in an all-female troupe and later took on the role of supportive female comic relief. Details of the performances are as follows:
 
"The Impetuous Generals"
September 11 (Saturday), 7.30pm
Auditorium, Tai Po Civic Centre
Tickets: $140, $220 and $320
Performers: Loong Koon-tin, Chan Wing-yee, Chan Hung-chun, Lui Hung-kwong, Ko Lai, Yuen Siu-fai and Lai Yiu-wai
Synopsis: Wen Cuijun, daughter of a famed general of the state of Chu, and Qi general Liu Xiaotian are lovers. Not knowing that Xiaotian and Cuijun are lovers, Yue E, daughter of a Qi government official, falls in love with Xiaotian. Xiaotian refuses and fuddles Yue E, and goes away in haste. The drunken Yue E spends the night with Luo Wenlong, mistaking him for Xiaotian. Cuijun learns about that and forms a hatred for Xiaotian.
 
"The Silver Dragon and the Golden Phoenix"
September 13 (Monday), 7.30pm
Theatre, Ko Shan Theatre
Tickets: $140, $200, $280 and $380
Performers: Loong Koon-tin, Chan Wing-yee, Chan Hung-chun, Lui Hung-kwong, Ko Lai, Yuen Siu-fai and Vong Seng-pan
Synopsis: Qiao Danfeng is a woman who is not only beautiful, but also well-trained in medicine, literature and martial arts. Living across from her is a quack doctor Dai Sangu. Not a day passes without the two bickering with each over one thing or another. When Zhang Zhongchi, an aristocrat from Huainan, puts up a notice looking for his long-lost mother, the covetous Dai Sangu audaciously claims to be her.
 
"Romance at the Peach Blossom Lakeside"
September 14 (Tuesday), 7.30pm
Theatre, Ko Shan Theatre
Tickets: $140, $200, $280 and $380
Performers: Loong Koon-tin, Chan Wing-yee, Chan Hung-chun, Lui Hung-kwong, Ko Lai, Yuen Siu-fai and Vong Seng-pan
Synopsis: The minister of Nanping's younger daughter, Cailuan, is of imperial descent but has a wild personality. The minister's elder daughter, Danfeng, has both literary and martial arts talents. The minister exchanges their identities so that Danfeng can be made crown princess. One day, Danfeng encounters Jincheng when hunting eagles, and they fall in love with each other. They exchange two arrows, one made of gold and the other silver, as tokens of the engagement.
 
     Presented by the Leisure and Cultural Services Department, tickets for "A Revival of Tam Lan-hing's Celebrated Repertoire in Cantonese Opera" are now available at URBTIX (www.urbtix.hk). For telephone credit card bookings, please call 2111 5999. For programme enquiries and concessionary schemes, please call 2268 7325 or visit www.lcsd.gov.hk/CE/CulturalService/Programme/en/chinese_opera/programs_1147.html.
 
     A pre-performance talk and a post-performance talk in Cantonese will be held. The pre-performance talk will be held at 7.30pm on September 6 (Monday) at AC2, 4/F, Administration Building, Hong Kong Cultural Centre (HKCC). Speakers include Loong Koon-tin, Chan Wing-yee, Chan Hung-chun and Ko Lai. The post-performance talk will be held at 7.30pm on September 15 (Wednesday) at AC2, 4/F, Administration Building, HKCC. Speakers for this talk include Loong Koon-tin, Yuen Siu-fai, Chan Wing-yee, Chan Hung-chun and Ko Lai. Admission is free. Telephone registration is required and please call 2268 7267 from 10am on August 27 (Friday). Limited seats are available on a first-come, first-served basis. Details can be found on the above website. The pre-performance talk will be recorded on video and broadcast online, details of which will be announced on the above website.