Press Release - May 11, 2004

The 80-member Hong Kong Ballet Delegation today (May 11) started its program of activities in Vancouver as Hong Kong’s Goodwill Ambassadors to enhance the already close ties between Hong Kong and Vancouver and to restore confidence in Asia’s world city after last year’s SARS challenge.

Led by the Permanent Secretary for Home Affairs of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, Ms Shelley Lee, key members of the Hong Kong Ballet Delegation including the Director of the Hong Kong Economic and Trade Office (Canada), Mr Bassanio So, the Board Chairman of the Hong Kong Ballet, Mrs Cissy Pao Watari, and the Hong Kong Ballet’s Chief Executive Officer, Ms Helen Ng, called on Mayor Larry Campbell of the City of Vancouver this afternoon.

Ms Lee briefed Mayor Campbell of the resounding success of Hong Kong Ballet’s “Legend of the Great Archer” in Toronto last Friday as a joint presentation with the Royal Ontario Museum and as Hong Kong’s contribution to Canadian culture. She also updated the Vancouver Mayor that arrangements were well in hand to prepare for the forthcoming ballet performance in Vancouver.

Mayor Campbell was pleased to note that over 90 percent of the some 2,900 tickets had already been sold and that there were still demands for tickets.

As part of the “Relaunch Hong Kong” promotion worldwide, the Vancouver performance of the Hong Kong Ballet’s “Legend of the Great Archer” is organized by the Hong Kong Economic and Trade Office (Canada) (HKETO). It is jointly presented with the Chinese Cultural Centre of Greater Vancouver (CCC) and the City of Vancouver in support of CCC’s expansion program.

After Toronto, Vancouver is the second stop of the Hong Kong Ballet’s North America four-city tour which also covers San Jose and Washington DC.

The Hong Kong Ballet Delegation arrived in Vancouver from Toronto early this week to prepare for the performance. In the last two days, members of the delegation, led by its Artistic Director, Mr Stephen Jefferies, met with local cultural groups and dance companies, including the Arts Umbrella, Scotiabank Dance Centre and British Columbia Ballet, and organized master classes for experience sharing.

Permanent Secretary Lee, the HKETO Director, Mr Bassanio So, and the Hong Kong Ballet Board Chairman, Mrs Cissy Pao Watari, and members of the Hong Kong Ballet will introduce the key dancers and the performance of “Legend of the Great Archer” to the media tomorrow (May12). They will visit the Chinese Cultural Centre for Greater Vancouver in the afternoon.

On Thursday (May 13), Ms Lee and her party will visit the provincial capital of Victoria where they will meet senior provincial and city government officials to renew friendship and enhance mutual ties.

The Hong Kong Ballet’s “Legend of the Great Archer” will be staged on Friday (May 14) at 8.00 pm at Queen Elizabeth Theatre in downtown Vancouver.

For more information about the ballet performance, please visit the HKETO website: www.hketo.ca.

For further information, please contact John Tam, Chief Information Officer at (416)924-5544, email [email protected] or Elison Chu, Senior Information Officer, [email protected] or Catherine Yuen, Principal Consultant, Vancouver at (604)331-1300, email [email protected].