CUHK
News Centre

The Fifth Chinese Universities Shakespeare Festival, co-organized by the Department of English and the Office of the Arts Administrator at The Chinese University of Hong Kong and sponsored by the Dr. Tien Chang Lin Technology Innovation Foundation, is scheduled to take place at Sir Run Run Shaw Hall, CUHK, from 25 to 27 May at 2:30pm. On the previous four occasions, the Chinese Universities Shakespeare Festival has proved to be an ideal platform for experiencing the drama and imagination of the finest English poet who ever lived.

Twelve finalists out of over thirty teams survived from the first round competition. They include Beijing Foreign Studies University, Fudan University, Hubei University, Lingnan University, Macao Polytechnic Institute, Nanjing University, Northeast Agricultural University, Sichuan International Studies University, Soochow University, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Wuhan University and Xiamen University of Technology. These teams are going to present selected scenes from Shakespeare’s renowned plays in a manner proven to entertain student audiences.

Since the Festival is meant to be an educational experience for the teams, master classes were arranged for all the thirty plus teams originally entering. The classes were held over three days in last November in each of the three regional centres: Hong Kong, Wuhan and Beijing. Each team was given individual attention. The master classes were designed to help the teams to identify areas of strength and areas that could benefit from new approaches or more work.

The adjudicators of the Festival are internationally acclaimed English scholars and theatre professionals, including Professor Geoffrey Borny, drama scholar and former Head of Theatre Studies, Australian National University; Professor John Gillies, expert on Shakespeare in East Asia and Professor of English, University of Essex; and Mr. Colin McPhillamy, an acclaimed actor, writer and director.

The winning team will enjoy a one-week trip to see Shakespeare performed professionally on the stage at Stratford and in London’s West End. Winners of the Festival’s various other prizes will be awarded electronic products donated by Shun Hing Education and Charity Fund.

Group tickets are now free for all secondary schools. Individual tickets will also be available from 4 May. Interested parties may call 2609 7528 or 2609 7851 for ticket reservation. All admissions are free. Free shuttle buses will be running from 2 pm at University Station and after the performances.