A deaf dance group in Hong Kong has said it was “saddened” after a charity arts organisation called off three performances scheduled for next month citing “changes in production arrangements.”
The Hong Kong Youth Arts Foundation (HKYAF) confirmed with HKFP on Thursday that it had cancelled community dance performance in collaboration with Fun Forest, a dance group consisting of members with hearing impairments.
The cancellation came a little over a month before the dance drama was set to be performed in Youth Square in Chai Wan on March 22 and 23.
The show was dropped due to “changes in production arrangements,” HKYAF said in an emailed response to HKFP’s enquiries. The foundation did not respond to questions about whether the cancellation was prompted by national security or political considerations.
“We apologise for any inconvenience caused,” HKYAF said.
Speculations
Speculations over the cancellation emerged on Wednesday night, after Fun Forest’s founder Jason Wong Yiu-pong shared on social media a screenshot of a Facebook status, which claimed that the show had been halted by the sponsor, Hong Kong Jockey Club (HKJC).
According to the status, the performance was cancelled because it was discovered after a vetting procedure that the producer of dance show had taught people to sing the 2019 protest song Glory to Hong Kong in sign language.
Wong, the choreographer and instructor of the production, was featured in a sign language music video of Glory to Hong Kong when the song was released amid citywide unrest against the since-axed extradition bill.
He also served as a sign language interpreter for press conferences organised by protesters in 2019.
Wong said on Wednesday night that he was uncertain whether the dance show would continue as planned.
“If the performance was suddenly cancelled, then the answer is very obvious,” he said.
In a Chinese-language statement released on Thursday night, Wong said his original intention was to use dance as a means to contribute towards building an inclusive society. The news of the cancellation had left members of the dance group “deeply saddened,” he said.
“I can only reluctantly accept the decision made by the organising committee. I had hoped to deliver a good performance, I did not think the performance would be cancelled at the end,” Wong said.
In a statement released on Thursday, HKJC said the performance was under the “stART Up Community Arts Project,” organised by the HKYAF. The foundation curated and executed the daily operation of the project and all of its activities, HKJC said.
“The Hong Kong Jockey Club Charities Trust is the funder, but has no direct involvement in the project,” the statement read.
Cancellations
Hong Kong has seen several performances cancelled in recent weeks, with performing arts group Fire Makes Us Human losing a venue for a play due to government pressure. A school it had hired performance space from to put on two plays was told by the Education Bureau to cancel the lease agreement. The group later announced to suspend operations.
The Hong Kong Academy of Performing Arts also scrapped a graduation show featuring the play Accidental Death of an Anarchist, saying it had been cancelled due to “changes in the Academy’s production plan.”
The production based on the play written by Nobel Prize winner Dario Fu was scheduled to be performed between mid-February and early March. Local media reported that some of those involved said they felt “helpless” and were “speechless” about the cancelled performance.
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