Immortals with images updated and made down-to-earth

Chow Fan-fu

The Hong Kong Chinese Orchestra’s credo to “uphold the tradition yet break new ground to create a legacy for our home base” needs to prove that actions speak louder than words. Their musical theatre series may well be described as such, with resounding success to boot.

The fourth production in the series, The Mad Monk and the Eight Immortals, is like its three predecessors - The Eight Immortals’ Adventures (2010), The Eight Immortals’ Adventures Prequel (2012) and Fantastic Gods and Spirits of China (2014), using the cross-media format and blending symphonic Chinese music with drama. The dramatization process is a clever use of the timbre of the traditional, ethnic instruments in telling Chinese folklore. In carrying out the credo, there are understandably different objectives and focal points, be they artistic or educational. Since this series is categorized as ‘for the family’, the objective cannot be clearer, i.e., to attract families to come and enjoy music that appeals to all ages, by making the different types of music employed in the staging and the narrative accessible to them. The HKCO strives to work towards the credo by making the concert experience both educational and enjoyable. How successful would it be? Well, we know already that the composer and the artists have put in all they can into the production to blend drama with music, from devising the musical score, writing the script to staging. But it also needs the audience to pay full attention to what goes on up there on the stage to make the show a success – that is to say, not to be a phubber with eyes glued to the hand phone, constantly scrolling, taking photos or videos, or with the mind wandering elsewhere…

In this production, except for the fact that the characters of the Mad Monk and the Eight Immortals are drawn from Chinese folklore, everything else is totally ‘out of the box’: IT products, modern logic, contemporary values, eclectic choice of musical genre – from Chinese traditional music, compositions from Hong Kong, to Western Jazz and pop, regardless of geographical, temporal, spatial and cultural divide etc. The character portrayals are timeless and universal. The musical collages create mood, portray characters, drive the story on, externalize thoughts and feelings, and enhance effects. The plot is fast-moving and fantastic. Such details can be overlooked if the audience let their attention wander and what a pity it would be not to appreciate the innovativeness behind the snappy story. As for the ‘down-to-earth’ theme, the novelty may not be as eye-opening as the music, yet there are also underlying messages worth exploring. For a family-oriented music programme, if the theme can arouse empathy in the audience, it can definitely fit the description of being ‘innovative’ as well.