[中][ENG] 與燕、宇、春、徽談場地空間與創作 Yin, Yu, Chun and Fai on Space and Choreography

聞一浩

Daisy Chu

香港文化中心今年慶祝三十周年，邀請了本地四位資深舞蹈家梅卓燕、伍宇烈、楊春江及黃大徽合作《燕宇春徽》，首次同台各自編導作品。四位舞蹈家的背景不同，但對香港舞蹈過去多年的發展，有其體會與看法。由於篇幅所限，這裡集中談場地空間與創作的關係。

Hong Kong Cultural Centre (HKCC) is celebrating its 30th anniversary this year. Four experienced local dance artists -- Mui Cheuk Yin, Yuri Ng, Daniel Yeung and Dick Wong -- were invited to choreograph and direct in the celebratory programme, Yin Yu Chun Fai (each word taken from an artist’s Chinese name). This will be the first time for the four artists of different backgrounds to work on the same stage, each with their individual pieces. They have experienced the Hong Kong dance scene and its development through many years and each has valuable perspectives to share. Due to the limited space of this article, I focus on reporting their views about the relationship between space and choreography.

新場地的出現 The Emergence of New Venues

香港表演場地大多由政府管轄。香港文化中心落成後的三十年間，由政府管轄的新增場地不多，獨立場地則出現了一定數量：石硤尾賽馬會創意藝術中心的黑盒劇場，兆基創意書院多媒體劇場、牛棚藝術村前進進牛棚劇場，以至去年開幕的大館，及剛啟用的西九文化區自由空間。不同形式及大小的場地出現，似乎對創作有一定幫助，起碼增加了演出的機會。

Most of the performing venues in Hong Kong are run and managed by the government. Over the thirty years since the opening of HKCC, not many new government-run venues were built. However, quite a lot of independent venues have emerged, such as the Black Box Theatre at the Jockey Club Creative Arts Centre (JCCAC) in Shek Kip Mei, the Multimedia Theatre at the Hong Kong Institute of Contemporary Culture Lee Shau Kee School of Creativity, the On & On Cattle Depot Theatre at Cattle Depot Artist Village, and the more recent additions of Tai Kwun and Freespace at West Kowloon Cultural District. The emergence of new venues of different shapes and sizes is beneficial to creativity, least of all in providing more opportunities for dance performances.

雖然場地多了，但黃大徽指出香港現在其實缺乏一些觀眾席不多，但舞台的空間不小的場地。這樣的場地讓創作人可以有一個較大的空間去創作，而不需因票房壓力而限制創作和題材。梅卓燕也同意認為這些新場地的空間及靈活性雖然都不同，但都沒有黃大徽所說的場地模式。她提及上海國際舞蹈中心，其實驗劇場觀眾席雖不多，但舞台空間跟其大劇院的一模一樣，大劇院節目的一些前期工作和排練均可以在那裡進行。這種靈活性暫時在香港未見到。

Even though there are more and more performing venues, Wong pointed out that Hong Kong lacks venues with small audience seating areas but with stage spaces that are not small. This type of venues allows choreographers to make work in a larger space, where their creative processes and contents would not be limited by box office considerations. Mui agreed that although these new venues have different interior setups and levels of flexibility, they lack the qualities of what Wong had described. She mentioned the Shanghai International Dance Centre, where the Experimental Theatre does not have a large auditorium, but the stage space is as large as the Grand Theatre, so that pre-production work and rehearsals of Grand Theatre programmes can take place there. This flexibility is not yet seen in Hong Kong.

（左起）梅卓燕、伍宇烈、黃大徽及楊春江Mui Cheuk Yin, Yuri Ng, Dick Wong and Daniel Yeung (from left)；攝Photo：Pazu@萬象鏡社（照片由康文署文化節目組提供 Photo provided by the Cultural Presentations Section of LCSD）

楊春江也提出，現在許多新場地的設計，其實已經預設了觀眾席的可能位置。新場地的好處是主事者會讓創作人作不同的嘗試及實驗，像他替ArtisTree做開幕節目，他們一開始就說可以讓他大膽地作空間實驗。梅卓燕說通常新場地都是這樣，最近參觀自由空間，西九也說會很開放地讓創作人作不同的嘗試。但場地常常於營運了一段時間後，就會慢慢地收窄使用自由。不過，他們也提出，不是創作人想用某一場地就可以，反而常常取決於哪個場地演期可供租訂。

Yeung explained that many new venues are already designed with various possibilities of audience seating area in mind. The host venues would encourage artists to experiment with the space. This was the case with Yeung’s opening show for ArtisTree. The organisers stated from the beginning that he could boldly experiment with the space. Mui said that new venues are often like that, and shared her recent visit to Freespace, when the West Kowloon Cultural District stated that they would give artists the freedom to experiment with different possibilities in their facilities. That being said, venues often gradually limit the freedom after running for a period of time. The four choreographers also thought that it is not always up to the artists to use a specific venue, but decisions are made according to availability and schedule.

利用場地的特性 Making Use of the Features of a Venue

雖然，香港大部份場地均由政府管理，場地沒有什麼特色，但也不是沒有可塑性。香港文化中心劇場便是一例。梅卓燕提到2001年她為城市當代舞蹈團編《十月紅》，就利用了劇場高層兩旁飛機位的設計，放上布條然後讓紅色的液體由上而流向下面的演區。而進念．二十面體早兩年只留高層作觀眾席，下面則全部作舞台，也是用上了場地獨特的設計，其後2018年城市當代舞蹈團桑吉加的《茫然先生》也採用了這個用法。2004年楊春江演出的《形忘極樂》，也是根據劇場的場地特性度身創作。他認為創作跟場地應有關係，現在創作時許多人會考慮巡演的可能，他認為在不同場地演出時亦應有所調整，每次演出都應該是場地特定的，這樣作品才有真實的生命。黃大徽也同意場地空間對創作是有影響的，而一個作品的生命力又在於怎樣去適應不同的空間，認為這樣很有挑戰性。

Although most of the venues managed by the government are similarly featureless, there are still possibilities. The Studio Theatre at HKCC is one of them. Mui recalled choreographing October Red for City Contemporary Dance Company (CCDC) in 2001. The work incorporated strips of fabric that were suspended from the seats in the upper area of the theatre, and red liquids flowed down into the performing area. Two years ago, Zuni Icosahedron used only the upper area as audience seating, leaving the whole lower floor to be the stage. This setting made use of the unique interior design of the theatre and was repeatedly used by different choreographers, such as CCDC’s Mr Blank(2018) by Sang Jijia. Yeung’s Metalove, in 2004, was also inspired by the distinct interior environment of the venue. Yeung felt that choreography should establish a connection with the venue. Under the current trend of taking the possibility of touring into creative considerations, he explained that every piece of work should be site-specific for it to come alive. Adjustments are needed if the work were to be staged in a different venue. Wong agreed that space plays a role in choreography, and that the vibrancy of a piece depends on how it adapts to different environments, which provides an exciting challenge.

左圖 Photo on the left：上圖為黃大徽於2004年首演《B.O.B.* 》的宣傳照，並以此作品獲邀到世界不同地方巡演 Above shows the promotional photo of Dick’s premiere performance of B.O.B.* in 2004, he was invited to tour around the world with this piece；照片由香港藝術節提供 Photo provided by the Hong Kong Arts Festival

右圖 Photo on the right：梅卓燕於2001年為城市當代舞蹈團編舞的《十月紅》Mui Cheuk Yin choreographed October Red for City Contemporary Dance Company (CCDC) in 2001；攝Photo：Ringo Chan

伍宇烈提到，如何運用場地許多時都是在較後期的技術會議才提出，但由於香港場地由許多不同的部門管理，增加了商討的時間，又會令場地使用時間過長。他也提出了對巡演的思考，指出由西灣河到元朗再回到上環演出，算不算巡演？因為劇場大小不同，這樣也需要將作品調整。是否要離開香港演出才是巡演等問題。

Ng revealed that in most cases it is not until the technical meetings at the latter stages of a production that the question is raised as to how the space is utilized. However, since the venues in Hong Kong are administered by different governmental departments, the time it takes to discuss and to set up the venues becomes longer. He also raised some thoughts around touring and questioned whether performing first in Sai Wan Ho, then in Yuen Long and lastly in Sheung Wan would be considered touring. As the theatres differ in sizes, dance productions would have to be altered accordingly. Is it touring only when performing abroad?

硬件之外要軟件 What About the Software that Runs the Hardware

楊春江則更著重，即是如何運作。現時演出，許多時主辦機構決定了場地，之後主辦者給予什麼的既定支援就成了創作人的限制，在這些限制中藝術家不是能真正客觀地去做自己想做的，他覺得現在就是最缺乏富靈活性的空間，他認為有多些靈活性，才有真正的不同選擇。伍宇烈則認為主辦者不靈活是正常的。因此，要不斷的了解在限制中找出有什麼可以做，什麼不能做的空間。

Yeung was more concerned with the software behind venues and facilities, namely how they are managed or run. Currently, venues are decided along with pre-determined support, and all these become a limiting factor on creative choices. Dance artists are unlikely to do what they want to do within the set boundaries. He felt a lack of flexibility and freedom in the use of venues, and flexibility and freedom allow artists to make real creative choices. Ng had a different view, that it is par for the course for organisers to have fixed rules and terms. Therefore, it is important for choreographers to keep exploring what they can and cannot attempt within the limits.

而所謂空間，還包括可用的舞台時間。楊春江提到，香港地少人多，入台時間少也可算是香港的特色。他以自己在荷蘭的經驗為例，曾經要求在劇場做排練兩個星期，這樣，他才真的可以嘗試做許多不同的實驗。伍宇烈則提到爭取較長入台時間，香港也不是不可能，只是有時可以，有時不能。這其實又回到場地靈活性的問題。

“Space” also means the availability of the stage. Yeung talked of the scarcity of time onstage being characteristic of working in Hong Kong. Taking his experience in the Netherlands as an example, he once requested two weeks of rehearsals in the theatre, so that he could truly experiment. Ng thought that it is not impossible to ask for a longer onstage period in Hong Kong; sometimes you get it and sometimes you don’t. It comes back to the issue of the flexibility of the venue.

黃大徽及楊春江，分別就提到上世紀八、九十年代的香港藝術中心，就有這樣的靈活性。楊春江覺得可能當年因為沒先例可循，因此大家都可能想看看場地空間可以怎樣運用。當然，他也指出，當年的團體沒那麼多，所以還有空間讓創作人有多些時間入台排練。伍宇烈在澳門文化中心也有類似經驗，他的「衣食住行」系列也就能夠有較多時間在台上實地排練。

Wong and Yeung both mentioned the flexibility of the Hong Kong Arts Centre in the 1980s and 1990s. Yeung explained that the artists then all wanted to be inventive with the venue because there were no precedents to follow. He added that there were of course not as many arts groups in those years, leaving more room and time for artists to rehearse onstage. Ng shared similar experiences at the Macao Cultural Centre, where he could also spend more time to rehearse in situ for Macao Tale: Have Steps, Will Travel.

可用舞台時間多少，除了因為演出頻繁之外，梅卓燕還提到，現時用什麼場地的決定很大程度取決於觀眾數量，即票房。有些演出是需要跟觀眾很接近，但又需要正式的舞台設施，但這樣觀眾數目就會少了，成本問題又會出現，所以背後牽涉的不止是藝術考慮。

The time available on stage depends not only on the number of performances in a venue. Mui suggested that box office is currently an important factor in selecting the venues. Some dance performances are designed to be close to the audience, but also require the formal stage facilities. This then leads to a smaller size of the audience, accompanied by the issue of cost. In other words, more than artistic considerations are involved in these decisions.

黃大徽（左）及梅卓燕（右）Dick Wong (left) and Mui Cheuk Yin (right)；攝Photo：Pazu@萬象鏡社（照片由康文署文化節目組提供 Photo provided by the Cultural Presentations Section of LCSD）

藝術視野及定位 Artistic Vision and Positioning

至於場地是否需要有藝術總監去全盤檢視場地的方向及運作，或者場地是否該有藝術定位。梅卓燕坦言這是個老問題，上世紀九十年代已開始討論，但至今三十年，還只是停在討論的階段。她說場地有藝術總監制定方向，令場地有其獨特性，其實是更符合經濟效益的。像她去到紐約，想看什麼類型節目，只要找到場地便可，各個場地有其特色，做現代舞的，做芭蕾舞的，一目了然。劇場也不用花大量金錢在宣傳之上。而香港灑了錢在宣傳上，卻也不知道有否接觸到目標觀眾。她指出藝術總監或劇場各有特色這方向，在國際行之有效，不明白在香港為什麼這麼保守。

Should there be artistic directors to oversee the entire operation of venues? Should venues have artistic positioning? Mui admitted that these are old questions, which have been in discussion since the 1990s and are still stuck in the discussion phase. Mui explained that a venue becomes unique if an artistic director sets a creative direction for it, which yields economic benefits. For example, when she was in New York, she would go to a specific theatre if she wanted to watch a certain genre. People could tell right away whether the theatre was focused on contemporary dance or ballet. Venues thus saved on publicity costs. In Hong Kong, large sums are spent on promotion without knowing whether the target audience is reached. Mui wondered why Hong Kong is so conservative about artistic positioning for venues when its effectiveness is evident across the international scene.

黃大徽指出場地因為有藝術視野，有了定位，建立了觀眾群，令他們對場地有信心。即使帶來的表演者觀眾並不認識，他們也會去看。另外，如果每個場地都有不同的藝術視野，大家做的東西會很不一樣，那就真做到百花齊放，對城市藝術的發展更為理想。

Wong pointed out that a regular audience can be established if venues have artistic visions and positioning. Audiences come to trust the venue, and are willing to watch new artists that they have not come across before. Also, if venues have different artistic visions, the work becomes more distinct, achieving a true diversity that helps the city’s art scene to flourish.

梅卓燕（左）及伍宇烈（右）Mui Cheuk Yin (left) and Yuri Ng (right)；攝Photo：Pazu@萬象鏡社（照片由康文署文化節目組提供 Photo provided by the Cultural Presentations Section of LCSD）

而且，梅卓燕認為沒有藝術定位的區分，也是難以讓各區不同的場地發展起來的原因，讓地理位置成了觀眾入場的指標。現在，演出在元朗劇院還是尖沙咀文化中心演出會有不同的對待。外國的場地，因為建立起特色，所以即使地點偏遠，觀眾也會去看。但香港場地毫無性格，因此地點成了重點。

Also, Mui explained that without artistic positioning, it is hard for venues in different districts in Hong Kong to grow audiences beyond geographic limits. Currently, the same performance at Yuen Long Theatre or at HKCC would signal differently to audiences. But audiences overseas are willing to travel to remote venues to watch performances, because the unique attributes of venues would draw in people. But Hong Kong venues lack personality, and so their geography becomes the main feature.

楊春江同意她的說法，許多人認為中環及尖沙咀是有文化的地區，他指出大會堂其實是多用途的場地，學校畢業禮又或者拍賣會都可以租用場地。暫時只有西九是打正旗號只做文化節目。他覺得即使小如石硤尾賽馬會創意藝術中心黑盒劇場，都可以有其藝術方向。伍宇烈則覺得康文署的場地伙伴計劃可以更有效發展。現時這些場地伙伴團體只不過是租用場地，他覺得可以有更闊的視野。這些計劃所在的文娛場地，許多都在政府綜合大樓內，那裡有街市、圖書館和體育館等等，其實可以做到一個社區的效果。如果有藝術總監，可以向這方向構思，就有意思。但可惜現在不是這樣，這些場地伙伴是連辦公室也沒有的，又怎可建立藝術視野和社區關係？他覺得這方面，新光戲院是做得不錯。但其他場地，就如梅卓燕所說，因為主要是由政府運作，就容易有很多規條。大家都同意，要更有效發展，政府應該放手由民間主理，只提供協助。

Yeung saw Mui’s point. He pointed out that Central and Tsim Sha Tsui are traditionally seen as the cultural districts of Hong Kong. The City Hall is actually a multifunctional venue, rented for such purposes as schools’ speech days or auctions. Only the West Kowloon Cultural District brands itself clearly for hosting only cultural programmes. He thought that small venues, such as the Black Box Theatre at JCCAC, can also have their own artistic directions. Ng suggested that the Venue Partnership Scheme by the Leisure and Cultural Services Department can be more effective. The participating organisations in the Scheme currently just rent the venues, but there can be a wider vision. Some of these venues are in Municipal Services Buildings, which house wet markets, libraries and sports centres, so they are not just locations but also communities. Artistic directors can strategize in this direction for meaningful programming. Yet, it is currently not the case, and partnered art organisations do not even get an office, let alone building artistic visions and community engagement. Ng thought that Sunbeam Theatre has been doing quite well in this regard. Yet many government-run theatres, like Mui explained, are heavily regulated. The four all agreed that the government should let civic bodies manage the operation of venues, limiting itself to the provision of aid. Without the government’s overshadowing interference, the venues would thrive.

伍宇烈Yuri Ng；攝Photo：Pazu@萬象鏡社（照片由康文署文化節目組提供 Photo provided by the Cultural Presentations Section of LCSD）

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