Back to school, back to culture! Hong Kong has set the tone with a plethora of cultural happenings in September, including many performances for music, dance and theatre aficionados.

We have selected eight events not to miss, from classical and jazz music concerts, to contemporary dance and tango performances, as well as theatre plays.

EVENTS IN FOCUS

MULAN
#dance

With an ingenious blend of dance, martial arts and theatre elements together with modern stage technology, this dance drama reshapes the story of legendary heroine Hua Mulan. This is one of the programmes of the Chinese Performing Arts Hong Kong Season Series, and also a celebratory programme of the 35th anniversary of the Hong Kong Cultural Centre.

14 & 15 September – Hong Kong Cultural Centre – More details here

COMPANY WAYNE MCGREGOR: DEEPSTARIA
#dance

This is the Asian premiere of the groundbreaking new work of internationally acclaimed British choreographer Wayne McGregor. Integrating contemporary dance, visual arts and new technologies, Deepstaria invites audiences to contemplate the interplay between darkness, knowledge, and our own morality, through a mesmerising self-exploring journey.

20 & 21 September – Xiqu Centre – More details here

POST OFFICE IN HELL – THE ORIGIN
#theatre

This new collaboration between novelist Westwingmoon and playwright-director Yan Pat-to revisits the story of Post Office in Hell (Part 1) performed in March. The play combines Westwingmoon’s insight into the funeral industry with Yan Pat-to’s experience of theatre in Hong Kong and Germany, exploring an innovative approach to storytelling that walks the audience on a path through life and death.

5 – 8 September – Freespace – More details here

GREAT PIANO CONCERTOS: SUNWOOK KIM PLAYS BRAHMS
#music

Since becoming the youngest ever and first Asian winner of the Leeds International Piano Competition in 2006 at the age of 18, Korean pianist Sunwook Kim has established a stellar international career marked by his perceptive interpretations and impeccable technique. He returns to Hong Kong to perform Brahms’ exquisite Piano Concerto No 2 with Hong Kong Sinfonietta and Music Director Christoph Poppen.

28 September – Hong Kong City Hall – More details here

AMBIGUOUS
#theatre

Following stay-at-home husband Chan Chi Yung and housewife Wang Xia, Ambiguous by Matthew Cheng premiered in 2021, garnering Best Play at the 30th Hong Kong Drama Awards and winning for Cheng Best Playwright at the 2023 Shanghai One Drama Awards. The play was also shown in cinemas in Hong Kong, Beijing, Guilin and Shenzhen. This re-run aims to satisfy theatre fans’ expectations.

13 – 22 September – Hong Kong City Hall – More details here

JAZZ SIGNATURES: GRACE KELLY QUARTET
#music

Multi-talented saxophonist, singer, songwriter-composer, band leader and internet sensation, Korean-American Grace Kelly makes her Hong Kong debut with an exciting repertoire of original work, arrangements of familiar jazz, pop and movie favourites, and tracks from her albums All That I Need and At The Movies. This concert is part WestK Jazz Signatures programme.

25 September – Xiqu Centre – More details here

TANGO IN THE NIGHT
#dance

City Chamber Orchestra of Hong Kong celebrates 25 years with an exhilarating night of sensually charged tango music. Audiences will be swept off their feet as the Binelli-Ferman Duo on bandoneon and piano, and tango dancers Claudio Hoffman and Cinzia Lombardi join CCOHK for a heady mix of tango nuevo and nostalgic tangos from the golden era.

30 September – Hong Kong City Hall – More details here

NATIONAL DAY CONCERT: VASILY PETRENKO & LI-WEI KIN
#music

New York-based Chinese composer Huang Ruo has handpicked four beloved folk songs, reimagining them into Folk Songs for Orchestra. Vasily Petrenko will conduct this concert, with Li-Wei Qin joining for Haydn’s enduring Cello Concerto, along with spring-inspired compositions by Delius and Stravinsky.

20 & 21 September – Hong Kong Cultural Centre – More details here