Performing Arts: The ‘Good’ of Going International

In recent years, organisations tasked with the allocation of public cultural resources have been progressively promoting performing arts internationally. In the year of 2018, the Hong Kong Arts Development Council (HKADC) organised three industry delegations to Classical:NEXT in Rotterdam, the Netherlands, the internationale tanzmesse nrw (tanzmesse) in Dusseldorf, Germany, and CINARS (Conférence internationale des arts de la scène/International Exchange for the Performing Arts) in Montreal, Canada. In addition, the Performing Arts Meeting held in Yokohama, Japan featured three Hong Kong performing units, while representatives from HKADC and the West Kowloon Cultural District Authority (WKCDA) participated in the conference. Together with the Seoul International Dance Festival and Yokohama Dance Collection, the City Contemporary Dance Festival formed a programme exchange alliance and assigned two pieces to be performed in Seoul in 2018.

For a long time, seeking performance or creative opportunities overseas has been one way for dance practitioners to develop their individual artistic careers. It was not until 2013 when Mui Cheuk-yin was elected as a council member of HKADC that delegations began advertising in the art market. Seeing the lack of support for independent dance practitioners in the face of global competition, Mui Cheuk-yin promoted the use of delegations to increase the visibility of Hong Kong dance in the art market. In 2014, Chan Chun-ying Anna, the then Head of Dance (Performing Arts) of WKCDA, dedicated herself to promoting creative exchanges between Hong Kong and the international dance community, and ‘Going International’ ostensibly became part of the institutional blueprint. With the allocation of public resources, dance practitioners eagerly set out onto the world stage.