[中][ENG] 總監主場 Artistic Director's Home: 何曉嵐 Margaret Ho
總監主場
Artistic Director's Home
Margaret Ho 何曉嵐
香港馬戲團 項目統籌、團員及表演者
Show Director, Performer and Tutor of Hong Kong Circus
翻譯Translation: Tiffany Wong
「為啟發而表演」是香港馬戲團的團旨。我們的製作糅合當代馬戲、舞蹈、劇場及多媒體藝術,志在香港分享這獨特的表演藝術形式。
“Perform to Inspire” is the guiding principle of Hong Kong Circus. . Our productions combine contemporary circus, dance, theatre and multimedia, a unique form of performing arts that we would like to share in Hong Kong.
作為香港馬戲團的藝術總監,我的靈感來自日常生活遇到的人和事當中看到的人文價值。透過在作品裡呈現常見的人際關係,我希望觀眾看完會反思及從中得到共鳴。我喜歡與表演者一同創作,鼓勵他們在作品中融入自己的馬戲專長。結合每個人的鮮明個性是使香港馬戲團獨一無二的關鍵。
As the Artistic Director of Hong Kong Circus, I draw inspirations from the people and events I encounter in my daily life, and the humanistic values drawn from these encounters. By showing familiar human relationships, my work aims to resonate with audiences as they make their own reflections. I enjoy creating work together with my performers, and I encourage them to bring their own circus specialty into the pieces. The meeting of each vivid personality is the key to the uniqueness of Hong Kong Circus.
《飯後好馬戲》中的火舞表演 Fire Spinning Performance from Circus in the dark;照片由香港馬戲團提供Photo provided by Hong Kong Circus
在香港演藝學院修讀音樂劇及在大型主題樂園工作的經歷擴闊了我欣賞不同形式的藝術的視野,亦令我醒覺當中的差異對觀眾造成的衝擊。也在這時候,初次接觸並愛上了火舞表演藝術,也遇上了香港馬戲團的創辦人梁振瀛。在我的空中特技老師Danielle Aubut的鼓勵和其他本地表演藝術家的啟發下,香港馬戲團在2012年成立。
Studying Musical Theatre at the Hong Kong Academy for Performing Arts and working at a major amusement park widened my horizon in appreciating different art forms, and also how these differences can make an impact on audiences. During this time I first encountered then fell in love with fire dancing, and met Chris, the founder of Hong Kong Circus. With encouragement from my aerial teacher, Danielle Aubut and inspirations from the local performing artists in Hong Kong, Hong Kong Circus was established in 2012.
可是,在香港走這樣另類的路向來被標籤為自討苦吃及不切實際,而事實上香港馬戲團的路也的確如此。除了要面對因偏離傳統框架而獲得的各種質疑和批評,這個城市的設計對馬戲藝術活動也並不友善。我們初期的創作受限於場地、安全和技術,但這些困難鞏固了我們堅持下去的決心。
However, alternative pursuits such as this are often written off as difficult and unrealistic. Indeed, the journey of Hong Kong Circus has been so. Besides the doubting and disapproving you have to bear for being outside the norm, the city itself is also not designed to be friendly towards circus arts. Our early works were impeded by venue, safety and technical constraints. Yet these difficulties strengthened our resolve to persist.
逐步地,香港馬戲團舉行了第一個公開火舞表演、製作了包含高空表演裝置的露天當代馬戲表演、舉辦與海外馬戲藝術家的交流項目,亦在不同的藝術場地舉辦過年度演出。除此之外,我們繼續努力爭取開放予公眾的演出機會,盼建立一個任何人都可以享受的舞台。
Step by step, Hong Kong Circus presented its first public performance of fire spinning; presented outdoor contemporary circus shows that featured high aerial construction; organised exchange programmes with international circus artists; and annual shows at various art venues. On top of that, we continue to fight for performance opportunities that are open to the public, towards creating a stage that is welcoming to everyone.
《機保的重生之旅》KIBO’s Journey of Rebirth;攝Photo: Lampson Yip
生於草根家庭,我若沒有在屋苑裡看到了一個免費的舞蹈表演,我肯定不會置身於此。它燃亮了我的青春、啟蒙了我對舞蹈的熱愛,啟發我去追求以舞蹈作為我的事業。同時我亦決心就像它啟發我一樣,去成為他人的啟法。
Coming from a grassroots background, I am certain that I would not be where I am today, if it wasn’t for a free dance performance I saw in my housing estate. The experience lit up my youth, and sparked my passion for dance so that I pursued it as my career. From this comes my determination to inspire others, just as I was inspired.
雖然香港舉辦大量表演藝術項目,但絕大部分都是收費的。對於基層市民,那些表演都屬於奢侈並遙不可及。因此,香港馬戲團的前提向來就是舉辦免費且向公眾開放的演出,希望用表演來感染不同界別的人。
Despite a great selection of performing arts events in Hong Kong, most of them require a payment to gain access. For the less privileged, these performances are a luxury and beyond their reach. And so, Hong Kong Circus has always prioritised performances that are free and welcoming to the public, hoping that we could influence people from different fields with our performance.
「馬戲承夢」"Circus Dream";攝Photo: Lampson Yip
香港馬戲團有幸參與由康樂及文化事務署舉辦的社區文化大使計劃。這是個很好的機會,以香港馬戲團的名義,向本地社區介紹當代馬戲藝術。2015年的《飯後好馬戲》打破了文化大使以往的傳統,首次舉辦在晚間舉行的演出,為街坊和上班族在忙碌的一天過後,提供與家人相聚的時光。2018年,融入了劇場和木偶表演的《機保的重生之旅》表達了對環境保護的關注。除了用當代馬戲說故事,我們希望引發觀衆反思,希望他們從觀劇經驗中得益。
Hong Kong Circus was fortunate to participate in the Community Cultural Ambassador Scheme organized by the Leisure and Cultural Services Department. It was a great opportunity for Hong Kong Circus to introduce contemporary circus art to the local community. 2015 Circus in the Dark broke with the previous tradition of Cultural Ambassadors, being the first programme in the scheme to be held at night-time. The timing of performances was for the convenience of the working people, so that their families can spend time together after a busy day. While in 2018, our children’s programme KIBO’s Journey of Rebirth incorporated theatre and puppetry in the circus to raise awareness about environmental protection. Other than telling stories with contemporary circus, we aim to stimulate our audiences and provoke reflections, so that their experience of watching a show can be beneficial.
香港馬戲團正在試驗各個新場地,探索在香港打造嶄新演出的可能性。我們因此成立了「馬戲承夢」計劃。在我們在賽馬會創意藝術中心藝廊的實驗作裡,觀眾須遊歷表演空間的各個地點揭開不同的馬戲表演。我們用布藝裝置配合窄巷營造了神秘的氣氛,呼應我們的森林主題。此外,我們亦運用了空間的高度展示不同空中表演設備。這個導演經驗很珍貴:縱使場地上有限制,我們也能夠恰當地運用有限的空間,戰勝了實驗性的挑戰。
Hong Kong Circus is also currently experimenting with new venues and exploring the possibilities of developing new performances in Hong Kong. For this reason, we established a scheme named "Circus Dream". In our experimental piece at JCCAC’s gallery spaces, audience members ventured through various locations of the performance space to unveil different circus acts. Our fabric art installations in the narrow corridor spaces created a mysterious atmosphere, echoing our forest theme. Also, we made use of the height of the space to showcase various aerial apparatus. This was a valuable experience as a director: despite the venue restrictions, we made good use of the limited space and came through with this challenge in experimentation.
雖然很花時間,但只要有毅力和決心,我們始終逐步邁向目標—這正是我從馬戲中學到會的。透過糅合每個表演者的獨特性的創作,我希望我的創作能感染其他漂泊的人、做夢者和你。
Although it takes time, with persistence and determination, we reach closer to our goal one step at a time. This was what circus has taught me. By bringing together the uniqueness of each performer’s creative work, I hope my creativity can resonate with other wanderers, dreamers and you.