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INTERVIEW: JIN HAO LI | Glasgow, BBC New Comedy Awards 2023

Interview

— Congratulations on winning the semi-finals of the BBC New Comedy Awards 2023. How did that feel?

Not to be gross, but the biggest takeaway was genuinely the friends I made. We all agreed to do this bit: when they announce the winner, if it isn’t you; bury your head in your hands in disgust and disappointment. Everyone committed. It was the funniest thing they filmed that night, and meant a lot more than if they just clapped for me.

— For someone who’s never seen you before, how would you describe your stand-up comedy style?

I would say it’s a warm hug that lasts too long.

— How did you get into stand-up?

The first live stand up show I saw was back home in Singapore. I was wearing my army uniform at the time and sat in the front row. I absolutely deserved getting roasted. But the biggest feeling that night was, if this is the standard that is acceptable to face the public, there is nothing to be afraid of.  So I did it the following week and once you start, you can’t really stop.

— What’s next for Jin Hao Li?

I’m building towards my first hour, which has to be excellent and immortalised. I’m working on two scripted projects at the moment: a sketch show, and a series that I’m writing with my friend Iris, about Chinese actors living in London.

Watch the BBC New Comedy Awards 2023 on BBC iPlayer.

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STARLIGHT EXPRESS | London, Troubadour Wembley Park Theatre, Starlight Auditorium

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Due to overwhelming demand, Andrew Lloyd Webber’s Starlight Express has already extended bookings through to 16 February 2025. Seen by over 20 million people across the world since its London premiere in 1984, Starlight Express will make its triumphant return to London from 8 June 2024 at the specially designed Starlight Auditorium at Troubadour Wembley Park Theatre, a state-of-the-art cultural destination only 12 minutes from central London.

A true theatrical event, Starlight Express will fully immerse audiences of all ages inside a world of speed, song and storytelling as an incredible cast of 40 whizz around and above, performing some of musical theatre’s most beloved songs, including “AC/DC”, “Make Up My Heart”, “Light at the End of the Tunnel” and the iconic “Starlight Express”.

As a child’s train set magically comes to life and the engines race to become the fastest in the world, Rusty the steam train has little hope of winning until he is inspired by the legend of the ‘Starlight Express’. Casting and all further information regarding the production will be announced in due course.

The first show by Lloyd Webber Harrison Musicals, Sunset Boulevard is currently playing at the Savoy Theatre in London. Starlight Express will be the second show produced by Lloyd Webber Harrison Musicals, the new partnership of Andrew Lloyd Webber, composer of some of the world’s most famous musicals, and Michael Harrison, critically acclaimed, award-winning international producer.

Playing at the Starlight Auditorium 8 June 2024 – 16 February 2025.

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LES MISÉRABLES | London, Sondheim Theatre

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Cameron Mackintosh announced today that Killian Donnelly will return to Les Misérables as Jean Valjean in the critically acclaimed production at the Sondheim Theatre from Tuesday 31 October 2023, for 15 weeks only.  Due to sudden family reasons, Josh Piterman, who is currently playing the role, will return home to Australia. His final performances will take place on Saturday 21 October 2023.

Killian Donnelly returns to the role, having previously played Jean Valjean to critical acclaim in both the original West End production and the sell-out UK and Ireland tour of Les Misérables. This will be his first time playing the role in the new London production at the Sondheim Theatre.  His other theatre credits include the role of ‘The Phantom’ in The Phantom of the Opera at His Majesty’s Theatre.

First staged in 2009, the 25th anniversary production of Les Misérables was co-directed by Laurence Connor and James Powell, with designs by Matt Kinley, based on the original 1985 production. Following a successful UK and Ireland tour, producer Cameron Mackintosh moved the 25th anniversary production into the West End in 2019, replacing the original 1985 production. At the time, the original 1985 creative team of directors Sir Trevor Nunn and John Caird, plus designer John Napier, expressed their feelings of “profound” unhappiness and betrayal: “Everywhere it is being advertised [as] a new production. It is not a new production.” Nunn and Caird are both credited on the 25th anniversary production as “adaptation”.

Boublil and Schönberg’s magnificent iconic score of Les Misérables includes the classic songs: “I Dreamed a Dream”; “On My Own”; “Stars”; “Bring Him Home”; “Do You Hear the People Sing?”; “One Day More”; “Empty Chairs at Empty Tables”; “Master Of The House”; and many more.  Several of its songs have become real life anthems of revolution, wherever in the world people are fighting for their freedom. Seen by over 120 million people worldwide in 53 countries and in 22 languages, Les Misérables is undisputedly one of the world’s most popular and contemporary musicals.

Killian Donnelly plays Jean Valjean at the Sondheim Theatre from Tuesday 31 October 2023, for 15 weeks only.

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OPENING WEEKEND | London, Southbank Centre

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It’s back to school! Come to the Southbank Centre for an amazing programme Thu 21 – Sun 24 Sep 2023, and enjoy a multi-buy discount for this classical music mini music festival. Classical music is an integral part of the Southbank Centre, and the “Opening Weekend” will celebrate the full breadth of the art form today.

Toks Dada, Head of Classical Music at the Southbank Centre, explains the success of the Southbank Centre’s “Opening Weekend” last year: “Our goal is to create as many ways for as many different people as possible to experience this wonderful art form called classical music, building on the success of our first Opening Weekend last year – during which we welcomed over 10,000 people across our spaces, many of whom visited the Southbank Centre for the very first time.”

The weekend will feature two major choral works, with Resident Orchestra the Philharmonia Orchestra, performing Verdi’s Requiem (21 Sept, RFH), and Resident Orchestra the London Philharmonic Orchestra performing Mahler’s Symphony No. 2 with soprano Sally Matthews, mezzo-soprano Christine Rice and the London Philharmonic Choir (23 Sept, RFH).

Former Southbank Centre Resident Artist and star of 2022/23, Víkingur Olafsson, arrives in London launching his global Goldberg Variations tour (22 Sept, RFH).

Returning Resident Artists, Manchester Collective, make their season debut with a double bill beginning with Different Trains, featuring work by Barber, Steve Reich, Cassandra Miller and a world premiere by Jasmin Kent Rodgman co-commissioned by the Southbank Centre and Manchester Collective (22 Sept, QEH).

They will then move into the Queen Elizabeth Hall Foyer for a classical-inspired club night featuring music from titans of minimalism including Steve Reich and Philip Glass.

The Opening Weekend will also feature organist Carol Williams in Mad Rush (23 Sept, RFH) with a programme of organ classics, jazz arrangements, and Williams’ own compositions.

The Multi-Story Orchestra perform RPS award-winning The Endz (23 Sept, QEH), telling the story of two friends torn apart by gang violence in London, and a new version of immersive Living Programme Notes (24 Sept, Clore Ballroom) providing a deep dive into classical music for young people and their families.

The Philharmonia Orchestra appears a second time during the weekend with a programme including Shostakovich’s Concerto for piano, trumpet & strings featuring pianist Seong-Jin Cho and the Philharmonia’s Principal Trumpet Jason Evans (24 Sept, RFH).

The Hermes Experiment make their Opening Weekend debut (24 Sept, PUR), including a new work by composer Elaine Mitchener, commissioned by the Southbank Centre.

Lastly, violinist Patricia Kopatchinskaja, one of the new Resident Artists for 2023/24, will close the weekend (24 Sept, QEH) with her international trio featuring clarinettist Reto Bieri, and pianist Polina Leschenko, with a programme including a new work composed by Kopatchinskaja herself.

Playing across the Southbank Centre Thu 21 – Sun 24 Sep 2023.

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DIVAS LONDON | London, The Prince Of Wales

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The Entertainment Providers (the team behind London’s sell-out, critically acclaimed Snow White And The Seven Merry Men in 2021 and Sinderfella in 2022) sashay back into the West End this summer, with a brand new party show, Divas London, at The Prince Of Wales Cabaret Venue (Drury Lane), for a three-week limited season.

Divas London is a brand-new, live, all-singing, all-dancing party show, celebrating the world’s greatest diva powerhouses: Whitney Houston; Aretha Franklin; Tina Turner; Cher; Celine Dion; Britney Spears; Beyoncé; Diana Ross; Amy Winehouse; Adele – all shall be represented. The show will also feature comedy tributes to the Spice Girls, Kate Bush, and – the Queen of Country – Dolly Parton.

The show will feature a top West End cast of male and female singers, emceed by a drag compère – the hilarious Simon Gross. Expect dazzling costumes and audience participation.

Ginny Lazzoni, General Manager at the Prince of Wales, says, “We are super excited for this opportunity to house this brand new party show for London, which is also perfectly in line with our new vision of the venue: we want it to be London’s number one night out. It’s a show not to miss.”

Audiences will be treated to a night of their classic diva anthems: “I Wanna Dance with Somebody”; “I’m Every Woman”; “If I Could Turn Back Time”; “Hot Stuff”; “Natural Woman”; “Material Girl”; “Think”; “Single Ladies”; “Proud Mary”; “Back to Black”; and many more.

Playing at the Prince of Wales Cabaret Venue 15 June – 2 July 2023.

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LANG LANG: THE DISNEY BOOK | London, Royal Albert Hall

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Global superstar pianist Lang Lang returns to London’s Royal Albert Hall, for an unforgettable evening of music celebrating the upcoming centenary of The Walt Disney Company, which was founded in 1923. Lang Lang’s 55-minute album featuring new solo and orchestral arrangements of classic Disney tunes was released in September earlier this year, to the delight of his fans worldwide.

At this celebratory event, Lang Lang is joined by the entire Royal Philharmonic Concert Orchestra, to perform favourite melodies that span the Disney centenary – from Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs (1937) and The Jungle Book (1967), to Beauty and the Beast (1991) and Encanto (2021). Lang Lang also draws on material from Disney’s iconic theme park attractions, like a solo theme and variations on “It’s a Small World”.

This enchanting musical journey offers the perfect half-term treat for young and old alike, with the magic of Disney brought to life by one of the world’s greatest pianists – alongside the sumptuous sound of a full symphony orchestra. It’s all part of Lang Lang’s aim to encourage the exploration of classical music.

With more guest artists still to be announced (on the album, Lang Lang partners with guest star singers like Andrea Bocelli and instrumentalists like Guo Gan), this promises to be one of the highlights of the Royal Albert Hall’s autumn calendar.

Tickets for Mon 24 Oct 2022 are available on the Royal Albert Hall’s website, priced £55.75 – £109.50.

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INTERVIEW | Septime Webre

Interview

Septime Webre is the artistic director of Hong Kong Ballet. He was kind enough to talk to us about Hong Kong Ballet’s new, upcoming production of The Nutcracker.

What made you decide it’s time for a new production of The Nutcracker?

The Nutcracker is a holiday tradition – the Christmas season just wouldn’t be the same without it! Our current production is almost ten years old, and it seemed like the right time for a make-over. The new production is set in early twentieth century Hong Kong, and is a celebration of Hong Kong’s culture, history and natural beauty – I think it will resonate with Hong Kong people.

What about all those audiences who still love the old production of The Nutcracker?

The essence of the previous production is to be found in the majestic Tchaikovsky score, and that remains intact. In fact, the music is the heart of The Nutcracker, and this new production provides the roadmap: it’s very much a return to the original ballet’s concepts, a charming story of a young girl’s marvellous journey to magical new lands.

What have been your major aims for Hong Kong Ballet, since taking on the role of artistic director in 2017?

We have long been one of Asia’s premier ballet companies—our goal is also to be its most forward-looking, with a focus on being cherished locally and respected globally.  We’ve endeavoured to reflect Hong Kong more thoroughly, while simultaneously raising the classical standards of the company. And we’re achieving our goals!

What’s next for Hong Kong Ballet?

So much exciting new work!  A major residency at M+, Hong Kong’s new signature contemporary art museum; the return of Yuri Ng’s lively Ballet Classics for Children: Swan Lake; a mixed bill which celebrates the rule-breakers of ballet; a new full-length ballet about the life of Coco Chanel, and more!

Playing 11 – 26 December 2021 at the Hong Kong Cultural Centre Grand Theatre.

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HK BALLET SEASON 2020/2021 | Hong Kong

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Don Quixote | Li Lin and Hong Kong Ballet Dancers | Photographer: Conrad Dy-Liacco | Courtesy of Hong Kong Ballet

We could not be more thrilled that Hong Kong Ballet, Asia’s premier ballet company, is pirouetting, glissading and jetéing back into live performance starting 30 October 2020.

This new season is bursting with classics, including: Don Quixote (30 October 2020); The Nutcracker (18 December 2020); Artistic Director Septime Webre’s Ballet Classics for Children: Cinderella, featuring a stripped-down and narrated version of Prokofiev’s score (30 January 2021); Balanchine’s Jewels (21 May 2021); and Septime Webre’s new Romeo + Juliet, with the Hong Kong Sinfonietta on Prokofiev’s iconic score (18 June 2021).

In addition, Hong Kong Ballet will be running turn(it)out festival for two weeks at West Kowloon Cultural District’s Freespace, kicking off with an opening gala on 29 January 2021. The Vivaldi / Handel Project follows on 5 February 2021, along with a ton of interactive, family-friendly activities and events throughout the two weeks.

Artistic Director Septime Webre says that the central theme for the new season is, quite simply, love: “The word “love” infuses absolutely everything at Hong Kong Ballet: love of being a dance artist, and love for our amazing city, which has seen and experienced so much this past year. Love fuels the dedicated work we do, and drives the innovative ways we engage with the community. Love is not about getting – it’s about giving.” Well, we certainly cannot wait to celebrate this love for ballet in Hong Kong again.

Read Hong Kong Ballet’s new brochure and get booking.

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PÉLLEAS ET MÉLISANDE | London, Playground Theatre

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Debussy’s celebrated 1902 opera, Pélleas et Mélisande, is the only opera he ever finished. Normally running (with intervals) at three hours, Opera on the Move’s new production has cut it down to 90 minutes straight through, with a cast of just six: three men, three women. Edited and rescored for two pianos by Peter Brook and Marius Constant, this is a dark tale, in which things are rarely as they seem.

Based on Maeterlinck’s inscrutable 1893 symbolist play, a stranger arrives in a strange land. Golaud (Benjamin Schilperoort) discovers Mélisande (Emilie Cavallo) in the forest. Enraptured and obsessed, he brings her home to be his wife. In this home of dying patriarchs, jealous minds and hopeless futures, it is not Golaud she sees, but his brother – Pélleas (Ben Thapa).

Directed by up-and-coming director Gareth Mattey, this new production embraces the surrealism of this fin-de-siècle masterpiece. True to the original, this scaled-down production will be performed in French with English surtitles.

London’s Playground Theatre in Latimer Road is the perfect place for Opera on the Move’s first fully staged opera, bringing together an international cast of singers and performers. Founded in 2018, Opera on the Move is a touring company based in London, who believe that opera is an exciting, engaging, and accessible art form, dedicated to bringing it to places it’s never been before.

Playing 8th and 10th May only. Book tickets online.

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