The Finalist

The last toe, located at the very edge of the human foot, symbolises the outermost part of the body. Its relationship with walking and shoes are often used to refer to the relationships between individuals and their family, workplace, and the world. When closely associated with the imagery of walking and exploration, the last toe aligns perfectly with the symbolic and narrative significance of Shekou! As one of the first special economic zones, Shekou plays a role in the country's development much like the last toe in our bodies; its geographical shape even echoes this concept. The production team integrate these intriguing ideas with the local community and the Lawn Park to create a site-specific performance piece. Type: Site-specific Body Performance Executive Producer: KWONG Wai-lap

The bus, though seemingly in constant motion, is a vibrant microcosm uniting passengers, drivers, ticket sellers, city planners, station staff, and more. Within this small intersection, people converge, then each bound for their unique destinations. Ticket, Please harnesses the power of documentary theatre to delve into the impact of urban development on every individual, using the bus as a captivating focal point. Audiences will gain a fresh perspective on the life, history, and diverse inhabitants of Shekou, and they are also invited to reexamine their own everyday routines. Type: Site-specific Theatre / Documentary Theatre Executive Producer: Crystal D.

Public spaces intersect and juxtapose, buildings rise and expand, leaving gaps filled with traversing streets. Pedestrian paths lead in all directions, uncertain if you’ll encounter a self-tuning traffic light or a handrail waiting to be touched. These objects, never silent, respond to everything passing by. —Festival begins, Once more construction, 'clang,' 'bang,' 'clang-bang,' sounds echoing as it climbs. People delight, imagining they hear the city's own drumbeat. But this word is too human, city is merely shaping its structure in motion, leaving traces behind. As for how this will be interpreted, the city lets everything flow through itself. 'Public Assembly' will launch an unceasing light and sound interactive performance at the site of the former Glass Factory. Over five days, actors, pedestrians, spaces, and objects might all become performers. Together, we enter the flowing city, freely exploring or encountering performances as they unfold—city and us shaping each other. Thus, in the upward stacking and the disordered crossings, people flow through the city. Type:Interactive Theatre and Exhibition Executive Producer: SZETO Roy, WANG Hao

The yearning for desire twists this mutated world, turning love and lust into excuses for seizing everything. When will we have the chance to redefine BEAUTY on our own terms? Lin Daiyu, birthed from Dream of the Red Chamber, and the Virgin Mary, brought to life through religious paintings, carry the weight of objectifying labels, aestheticising our rights of love and desire, which seem like natural urges. But what if I want to say NO to all of these? Type: AI Action Theatre Executive Producer: KU Ieng Un

My Dad Is Dead fuses the artistry of European mask theatre with a poignant Chinese family story. Set against the evocative backdrop of the Watch Tycoon Cafe in a repurposed factory, this production orchestrates a tender, thought-provoking but surreal Chinese funeral. As the layers of the ceremony peel back to reveal the truth behind a father's suicide, the production delves into the nuances of emotional expression within Chinese families and shines a light on the fading sense of individuality in today’s world. Type: Mime, Mask Theatre Executive Producer: KWONG Wai-lap, SZETO Roy

During the annual self-service machine evaluation day, several machines unexpectedly malfunctioned before the mall could open. Factory workers, summoned at the last minute, are tasked with repairing the machines from the inside, with the threat of immediate dismissal if the evaluators find their work unsatisfactory. Audience members step into the role of evaluators, roaming the mall to experience and assess the various “self-service machines.” Knowing that their ratings will determine the outcome of the machines’ evaluations and the workers’ fates, how will they perform their jobs? Type: Interactive Theatre Executive Producer: KWONG Wai-lap

I Remember… is an interactive theatre. Audiences become ambassadors of the "Emotion Soup," journeying through a marketplace where reality and imagination converge. Their mission is to restore two fragmented, suspended memories linked to a mysterious recipe. Each participant embarks on a unique, ever-evolving path of memories, with their choices and the whims of fate shaping distinct outcomes. Like a kaleidoscope's shifting patterns, the narrative continually transforms with each turn. Type: Participatory Theatre Executive Producer: KU Ieng Un

In the shadowy, softly lit Grand Machine Hall of the old industrial site, I-Factory, Mei Zhuoyan and a cat tiptoe cautiously. This performance weaves together words, light, sound, and fluid body movements, crafting a narrative that explores the subtle resonance between the traits of stray cats, the fluidity of the definition of "home," and Mei's own life philosophy. Amidst the grandeur of the industrial relics, an emotional arena is created to foster shared experiences. Audiences join Mei in establishing trust with the cat, listening to its stories and Mei's diary entries. Type: Monologue Executive Producer: Crystal D.

As a sequel to Tail of the Snake, Tales of Consumed Dreams delves deeper into the social issues of the city, turning the urban environment itself into a dynamic stage that breathes with local authenticity. This enhanced production introduces event-driven storytelling, inviting participants to go through various narratives. Through an interactive, game-like journey of scene decryption, each participant will be swept along the unfolding plot, crafting a unique Shenzhen story along the way. Type: Participatory Theatre, Urban Theatre, Real Life Adoption Executive Producer: KWONG Wai-lap, SONG Ke

Everyone has a soft spot that makes them human. But what happens when someone carries too many vulnerabilities? Once these soft spots, once a sign of weakness, become commonplace, they are easily forgotten. Encased in a suit of armor called "Numbness," a person appears invincible but loses their humanity in the process—this is what Dream Cycle about. The Dream Eater in the house lose the ability to dream and the very vulnerabilities that made them human. Alcohol becomes their weapon, aiding them in stealing the dreams of others. When the Dream Hotel turns into a prison, trapping these fragile yet vibrant dreams, it traps the Dream Eater too. Today, as an invited guest at the Dream Hotel, after witnessing the Dream Eater's treasured dreams, will you trade your vulnerabilities and weaknesses? Will you stay at the Dream Hotel, accompany the Dream Eater, and become one yourself? Type: Immersive Theatre Executive Producer: KU Ieng Un

Everywhere is a homage to the city and to youth, a dialogue that transcends time and space with poet Xu Lizhi. Emerging from the New Writing section of the 2023 Shekou Theatre Festival, this script takes shape in 2024 under the direction of Huang Suhuai. He joins forces with Chen Yanjun, Jin Mengjiao, Li Yuqian, and Zhu Yanmin—a creative team of cross-media artists—to stage a contemporary performance in the vast silo of the I-Factory, an industrial relic. Blending text, body, scent, sound, and visuals, they aim to craft an immersive experience that seamlessly intertwines theatre, exhibition, and expanded cinema. Playwright: HUANG Suhuai Type: Multi-media Contemporary Theatre Executive Producer: SZETO Roy, WANG Hao

Silence feels so safe, yet listening to sound, following it, exchanging it, and finally making it—this, too, is instinct. You tune into his frequency and hear his fable unfold: As the most intelligent parrot, the Grey Parrot mastered all the sounds taught by its owner, harmonising and living a mundane life. But as the most intelligent parrot, it grew its own unique voice alongside the radio broadcasts—one not taught by the owner, but one that became an unsettling anomaly, fracturing its once tranquil existence. The owner tolerates, postpones, and ignores the Grey Parrot’s transformation, while the parrot conforms, pretends, and maintains its former self. Until the radio party becomes a turning point, and they finally confront the raw connection and conflict.

I don't think I'm capable of telling other people's stories. I can only speak for my own I’ve been contemplating—a form, a way to tell a story. A character, a voice, a passage, a fable. Light or heavy, fast or slow. I want to answer a question, but the question itself remains elusive. How do I distill countless questions into a clear direction? It feels like solving a riddle. I don't think I'm capable of telling other people's stories. I can only speak for my own. So I write, rewrite, and rewrite again. In every stroke of the pen, I discover who I truly am.

It's like I made a phone call. Beep, beep, beep, beep. In that half-awake, half-asleep state, the beeping sound feels like a line is about to drop. A woman invites a young man to a hotel for a deep talk. Beneath their ambiguous power play, a looming crisis brews. War on the bedsheet. Three falls, two people trapped, and one phone call. Where did the spider silk that descended from above in the room come from?

A girl who cannot see, a girl who cannot see the future, a crow that cannot fly, and a room full of eyes and mouths. The daytime is getting longer, the temperature is rising, and everything is calm...... “Thud!” It sounded like something hit the window. Lan felt her way towards the sound—feathers, soft, warm. It seemed to be a bird.