Organised by the Cultural Affairs Bureau, the 18th Macao City Fringe Festival, is held from 11 to 27 January 2019. The opening ceremony was held on 11 January 2019, at 7:30pm, at the Old Court Building, and was officiated by the Vice President of the Cultural Affairs Bureau, Deland Leong Wai Man and representatives of the participating art groups of this edition of the Fringe Festival; and was attended by the Head of the Department of Performing Arts Development, Iu Wai Man; the Head of the Division of Performing Arts, Lei Lo Heng; and representatives of other art groups. The opening ceremony also symbolizes the grand opening of the “18th Branch of Macao City Fringe Supermarket”. The public is advised to purchase their tickets as soon as possible as tickets for some of the programmes are limited.
This edition of the Fringe Festival is themed “Extra．Ordinary”. Through different means of expression, it liberates creativity from theatre spaces to every corner of the city, injecting changes to daily scenes, and ultimately turning arts into a daily routine. On the day of the opening ceremony, Sigma by circus Gandini Juggling and award-winning choreographer Seeta Patel from the United Kingdom, showcases exuberant rhythms and colours and creates virtuoso geometries through the combination of circus and Indian dance.
The Interactive Urban Music Ensemble features an installation art and an outdoor orchestra, inviting the audiences to play music by touching an installation with drawings of different musical instruments; Ephemeral Windows – Rooftop Street Art uses rice paper to show a non-invasive street art, inviting people from different walks of life to exchange views and participate, transforming the city through art; Flash Mob – Phubber Drama invites the audiences to engage in an interaction filled with fun and reflection by catching phubbers at bus stops. Other splendid performances include The Icebook by British artists Davy & Kristin McGuire from the United Kingdom, is the world’s first projection mapped pop-up book; the show Be My Old Friend by the Dream Theatre Association, tells personal stories of the elderly about their cherished objects, piecing together the bygone days of Macao; in the outdoor performance Sonia, written by local scriptwriter Ma Wai In and directed by Ku Ieng Un, the audience will listen to a story which reflects the “reality” of “non-human” characters; the dance performance Goldfish, presented by Four Dimension Spatial from Macao and Changde Modern Dance Company from Hunan, will reveal the concealed memories of emotional taboos under the logic of dreams.
This edition of the Fringe Festival also features 10 outreach activities, including workshops, talks, art critique and sharing sessions, among others, seeking to enrich the audience’s artistic experience with more diverse activities. Registered participants are advised to arrive punctually. Tickets for the Fringe Festival are now available at the Macau Ticketing Network. Registration for the Fringe Festival’s outreach activities are available online through the website www.icm.gov.mo/eform/event. For phone registration and enquiries, please contact IC through tel. no. 8399 6699 during office hours. For more information about the programme, please visit the Fringe Festival’s website at www.macaucityfringe.gov.mo or the “Macao City Fringe Festival” page on Facebook. 24-hour ticketing hotline: 2855 5555; ticketing website: www.macauticket.com.