The "Hong Kong Creative Drama Festival" jointly organized by the Hong Kong Teachers Drama Association and the Hong Kong Baptist University Centre for Holistic Teaching and Learning is currently in its fourth year anniversary. This event attracts over 40 primary and secondary schools to participate, this year include students from Wong Li Shan Memorial Secondary School and SKH Lam Woo Memorial Secondary School. The festival encourages students to explore themes and issues related to their community and society through the performance of impromptu skits based on topics relevant to common sense or liberal studies, thus using dramatic language to express their opinions.

On the day of the festival, each team is asked to perform an impromptu skit based on the designated theme, which for this year is “Healthy Living”. Students can base entire or parts of their performance on events and characters, or choose to create their own plot and characters; they can rewrite, extend or complement ideas to express their views and experience about “Healthy Living”. After each team is informed of their topic, there will be 15 minutes of preparation time. The teams will only find out the specific details about the topic at the beginning of the preparation time; teachers must remain in the audience, and no other props can be brought or used. 

Chairman of the Hong Kong Creative Drama Festival Dr. Huang Liping explains that a different theme is promoted each year, mainly around issues of concern to schools: “In the first two years we looked at topics related to environmental protection, and last year it was moral issues.” The topics are also closely linked with the Liberal Studies: "The purpose of this festival is to link drama with general education in the context of personal development for secondary schools, and encourage students to express their views on everyday life through dramatic form to bring into it a different perspective." Dr. Wong said that in the past participating students showed a very positive reaction and thoroughly enjoyed the process. The improvisation format means that they do not have to remember any script, and the 15 minute preparation time without teacher assistance further tests the creativity and critical thinking ability of the students.

The festival awards teams with exceptional, outstanding and meritorious performances, and the judging panel is comprised of Dr. Ng Chui Shan, Assistant professor from the department of Curriculum and Instruction at the Hong Kong Institute of Education, Dr. Leung Mei Ping, Assistant Professor of Visual Arts at the Hong Kong Baptist University, and Dr. Ho Shun Yi, Assistant professor of Literature at the University of Hong Kong Institute of Education and Languages. The performances are judged on four different criteria categories: creativity, visual presentation, communication and dramatic language. Dr. Leung Mei Ping was frank about the challenge of improvisational theater that requires script analysis, scene co-ordination and the use of propos: “The visual presentation aspect requires the students think about the stage area, while at the same time they need to co-ordinate the individual performances and play their part according to script, so it is not just a basic improvisation.” At the conclusion of the festival, the judges will nominate winning teams from each category of the “Hong Kong creative Drama Festival" to recreate their winning performance to further facilitate the educational exchange process.

Photo Credits: Hong Kong Teachers' Drama Association