Review | The 10th Hong Kong Tap Festival an energetic celebration of dance featuring talent from city and East Asia
- The 10th Hong Kong Tap Festival was also a celebration of 15 years of R&T, its presenter and Hong Kong’s only professional tap dance company
- Dancers from Japan, Korea, Taiwan and Shanghai joined Hong Kong counterparts in showing off their skills, with a finale choreographed by a local tap legend
The 10th edition of the Hong Kong Tap Festival was also the 15th anniversary of its presenter, R&T (Rhythm & Tempo), Hong Kong’s only full-time professional tap dance company.
The festival’s gala performance was a celebration of the passion and dedication R&T have put into pioneering and popularising tap dance in Hong Kong.
It brought together Hong Kong talent along with guest artists from Japan, South Korea, Taiwan and Shanghai, in a showcase of technical skill and energy.
The programme included a series of group, pair and individual numbers, some accompanied by recorded music, others by live music from a four-piece jazz band.
Solos from two Japanese dancers stood out: long-time R&T supporter Yuta Hori, who goes by the stage name Pori, appeared in Softly as in a Morning Sunrise, full of witty interaction with pianist and band leader Bowen Li (himself a virtuoso performer); and Ikki Yonezawa, who showed breathtaking rhythm and control in There Will Never Be Another You.
There were also strong contributions from South Korea – Arirang featured Kwon Oh-hwan and Kim Soon-young competing with each other in spectacular fashion.
Kim later displayed his singing skills in the elegantly laid-back Feel Like Making Love, while Park Ji-hye’s Well You Needn’t showed that women can more than hold their own when it comes to tap virtuosity.
Another highlight was the hilarious 4 Men at the Airport. Choreographed by Pori and performed by him along with Kwon, Reco Cheng from Taiwan and R&T’s Ken Kwok, this crossover collaboration showed that both humour and the misery of waiting for a delayed flight are universal.
The atmosphere was electric, with a packed house cheering every number – a rare pleasure in a city where audiences are often too muted in expressing their appreciation.
A lively finale brought all the dancers together on stage with guest choreographers Yukiko “Smilie” Misumi, from Japan, and Hong Kong’s Mandy Petty.
The city’s leading tap teacher for more than 40 years and an inspiration to generations of local dancers, Petty received a huge response from the audience and showed she can still shuffle a soft shoe with the best of them.
“R&T: The 10th Hong Kong Tap Festival Gala”, Studio Theatre, Hong Kong Cultural Centre. Reviewed: Sept. 9
