This event is co-organised by the Chinese Artists Association of Hong Kong and HKMU Ina Ho Cantonese Opera Research Center.
Guest speaker
Ms Chin Shan
Hosts
Ms Lam Wai-ting, Dr Chan Kar-yue Kelly
Date
August 9, 2025 (Sat)
Time
2:30 – 4:30 pm
Venue
Serena Yang Lecture Theatre (Room C0G01), G/F, Block C, Hong Kong Metropolitan University Main Campus
30 Good Shepherd Street, Ho Man Tin, Kowloon
This seminar, titled Timeless Grace on Stage: Impersonated Male Role Reimagined, focuses on the art and life of the kunsheng—female performers who specialize in male roles on the Cantonese opera stage. Our guest speaker, Ms Chin Shan, will share her personal journey, discuss the taboos, challenges, and negotiations inherent to the role, and reflect on how she integrates tradition and modernity. She will also explore how innovative collaborations across disciplines are helping to drive the continued development of Cantonese opera.
Chin Shan, a disciple of renowned Cantonese opera artists Man Chin-sui and Leung Siu-sum, has studied Cantonese opera since the age of 12, specializing in male roles (sheng). She graduated from University College London with a BA (Hons) in Linguistics in 2013, and from the Hong Kong Academy for Performing Arts in 2017 as part of its first cohort of BFA (Chinese Opera) graduates, receiving both the Best Student Award and the Director's Award. She later completed an MA in Arts and Cultural Enterprise at Central Saint Martins in 2020. Chin Shan is a full-time Cantonese opera performer, and is the founder of Shan Opera after having been a member of the Young Cantonese Opera Troupe.
LAM Wai-ting
Ms Lam Wai-ting holds a Master’s Degree in Cultural Management from The Chinese University of Hong Kong. She is a board member of the Chinese Artists Association of Hong Kong, an emerging Cantonese opera dan (female role) performer, a programme host at RTHK, a columnist for Cantonese Opera Magazine, and a Cantonese opera instructor. Trained in vocal music from childhood, Lam joined the Long Fai Children’s Cantonese Opera Troupe in 1997 and has since studied under renowned artists, including Ms Susanna Cheng Wing-mei. She has performed leading dan roles in Singapore and Malaysia, and is a principal performer in the Cantonese Opera Young Talent Training Programme. Lam has also appeared with major troupes such as Kam Yu Tong, Sun Kwan Ying, and Zi Ying Fung.
Dr CHAN Kar-yue Kelly
Dr Kelly Kar-yue Chan completed her undergraduate degree (First class honours) and her master’s degree (Distinction) both in the discipline of Translation and Interpretation at the City University of Hong Kong. She then finished her PhD in Classical Chinese Literature at the University of Edinburgh, Scotland, United Kingdom. Currently an Associate Dean (Teaching and Learning) cum Associate Professor in language and translation of the School of Arts and Social Sciences at Hong Kong Metropolitan University, she teaches courses on culture and translation, and literary translation; and supervises translation and research projects for undergraduate and postgraduate students. She is also the Centre Director of Ina Ho Cantonese Opera Research Centre (IHCORC). Her research interests include literary translation, classical Chinese literature (poetry), and translation of Cantonese Opera.
