Exploring the past and seeking the origins: Lighting lanterns in the first month of the lunar year to celebrate the cultural heritage of the Dingwei Village
http://news.tvb.com/local/58b20a146db28cc21ccbfa60
With urbanization, walled villages are becoming less and less. The people of walled villages attach great importance to passing on the torch, including traditional rituals. This morning, villagers in Tin Sam Village, Sha Tin, played gongs and drums and danced the Qilin to lead the lantern lighting ceremony .
Hong Kong Commercial Daily
November 17, 2016
The Tai Ping Qing Jiao Festival in Tin Sam Village cost HK$3 million
http://www.hkcd.com.hk/pdf/201611/1117/HN03B17CX03.pdf
Hong Kong Wen Wei Po
November 21, 2016
Liza Wang puts on makeup herself without asking others to do it for her. She plays the role of Tian Xin again after ten years.
http://paper.wenweipo.com/2016/11/21/EN1611210006.htm
Hong Kong Wen Wei Po News (Reporters Chik Ngai-yee and Chan Tien-chun) Liza Wang (Ajie) and Law Kar-ying performed a big play for the Shatin Tin Sum Village, which is held every ten years. Ajie had already formed an indissoluble bond with Tin Sum Village ten years ago. She played the role of a beautiful woman in a carriage in the first play of the village, "The Six Kingdoms' Grand Enthronement of Prime Ministers". Ten years later, Ajie performed for Tin Sum Village again. She admitted that she was very happy and had a good fate!
As early as 2006, Liza Wang had performed at the Tai Ping Qing Jiao Festival held every ten years in Tin Sam Village, Shatin. Ten years later, she and her husband Law Kar-ying reunited to form a relationship in Taiwan. The day of the interview was the last day of performances, and Liza Wang performed in the comedy "Lucky Stars Welcome the Spring". The backstage of the stage was hung with gorgeous costumes. Liza Wang, who is usually busy with work, did her makeup in front of the reporter without asking anyone else to do it for her. When Liza Wang was interviewed by our reporter, she said that it was a kind of fate that she could participate in the performance again after ten years, and she was very happy. Before going on stage, Liza Wang took the time to review the script. When she encountered something she didn't understand, she immediately went to the stage next to her to act with Law Kar-ying. She is serious and dedicated to her work!
Ka Ying says Cantonese drama scriptwriting standards have fallen
Law Kar-ying, who was also at the event, believed that the scripts written by the new generation of Cantonese opera scriptwriters are only suitable for singing, but not for acting. In short, they are "singing emotions, but no performance". Kar-ying admitted that even the "singing" part is not particularly outstanding. Kar-ying said: "The lyrics are average, and the Chinese level is worse than that of previous scriptwriters; the music is also average, and cannot get out of the framework of Tang Di-sheng. They want to imitate Tang Di-sheng as much as possible, but they can't write that kind of elegant feeling. If they want to improve, they need more life experience and more immersion in opera."
Finally, Ka Ying compared the traditional master-apprentice system with the current academy system. "The current system is not bad. The training provided by the Yau Ma Tei Theatre is more orthodox and standardized, and there are venues for students to practice. On the contrary, some people who call themselves "masters" have never performed a play. However, the current system is a little different from the past. In the past, the "civil and military students" were masters, and when the teacher performed, the apprentice would also perform with him, but now the teacher will not arrange for you to perform with him."
Apple Daily
December 4, 2006
Hong Kong's Authentic Jiao Festival
http://hk.apple.nextmedia.com/supplement/culture/art/20061204/6584094
The indigenous people who had immigrated to distant places returned home one after another, and there were people of all races in their families. Just because of the Taiping Qingjiao Festival, the deserted village that had long been isolated from worldly life suddenly became an international metropolis. Who said that it was a declining tradition?
Hong Kong's Tai Ping Ching Jiao Festival may be the last and most legendary tradition in China. It is dedicated to the gods and spirits, sacred and inviolable, yet at the same time very secular, and it has planted the seeds of an endless succession of power redistribution. There are also continuous singing and dancing, people and gods having fun together, and turning human affairs into endless stories. However, it was uprooted by the Communist Party and cut off from the mainland, but Hong Kong has inherited this most colorful heritage, breathing in the same breath with thousands of years of culture...
There are 10 rituals in Hong Kong
"Da Jiao" is also called "Jian Jiao". It is a large-scale sacrificial activity to communicate with ghosts and gods through Taoist priests. In addition to the annual Cheung Chau Jiao, there are about 9 other Jiaos in Hong Kong, which are generally held every 5 or 10 years. The Sheung Shui Jiao is held every 60 years. In addition to the Kat O On Lung Jiao and Shek O Jiao, which were held just a few months ago, there is also the Sha Tin Tin Sam Village Jiao held a few days ago, the Tuen Mun Jiao, which is the last day today, and the Wong Tai Sin Nga Tsin Wai Village Jiao, which is about to be held, all of which are held every 10 years. There are also Tai Po Lam Tsuen Township Jiao, Tai Po Tai Hang Township Jiao, and Kam Tin Jiao. There are so many Jiao periods in a small place like Hong Kong.
Although it takes a long time to organize and costs a lot of manpower and material resources, for the villagers, the Dajiao is one of the most important religious activities in their lives. Dajiao activities all have a procedure, and the form is similar, such as using the holy cup to divine the date in front of the gods, selecting the representative "Yuan Shou" who serves the gods during the Dajiao, or the general manager and the person in charge. On the day of the Dajiao, the Taoist altar invites all the gods and Buddhas around to participate in the Dajiao, and performs magic plays to thank the gods overnight, fasts and baths, parades around the village, and worships the ghosts. Then, the Dashi King (Ghost King) is burned to end the ceremony, and all the gods return to their positions. It is said that this custom began in the Song and Yuan dynasties, and it was a sacrificial activity that spread from the court to the people.