FRENCH MAY : Jockey Club Community Outreach and Arts Education Programmes
Talk: Jacques Offenbach and the World of French Operetta
AF
Library, Jordan Centre, 1/F, 52 Jordan Road, Kowloon
Tuesday, 17 May 2022
7:30
pm
In English
Free
admission, registration required
Speaker: Peter Gordon
Moderator: David Cordina
Operetta became recognised as a musical genre around 1850 in Paris, and one of its
first and arguably most famous proponents was Jacques Offenbach. Unlike the sometimes stuffy productions of L'Opéra
de Paris,
Offenbach's compositions were light, airy and very funny – and immensely popular. Offenbach poked fun
at the society of the day and music – such as the infamous Can Can – which has become iconic.
This session will give a whirlwind overview of some of Offenbach's more memorable works, from his riffs on Greek mythology Orphée
aux Enfers
and La Belle Helène to the contemporary satire La vie parisienne. The talk will conclude with an overview
of the one-act Pomme d'Api. Peter Gordon is the director of HongKong Premiere of Pomme d'Api - 8th June 2022.
About the Speaker - Peter Gordon
Peter Gordon has been involved with opera in Hong Kong for more than a
decade, giving talks, translating subtitles and writing programme notes. Along with his partner Marco Iannelli, he has
recently directed several small-scale comic operas in Hong Kong and Macau for such organisations as the French May Arts Festival and the
Italian Cultural Institute in Hong Kong and has been named “Knight of the Order of the Star of Italy” for
work in opera.
If you are interested in participating in this talk, please register
on the French May Arts Festival’s website.
This talk is affiliated to "Pomme d'Api" by Jacques Offenbach's Hong Kong premiere directed by Peter Gordon.
Presented by:
Co-organised by:
Exclusive Sponsor:
*Participants must follow the anti-pandemic measures and arrangements by the Organiser. The arrangement of activity is possible to
be changed in light of COVID-19 and government measures.
1. Eating or drinking is not allowed.
2. A face mask must be worn at all times and your body temperature must be checked at the entrance on the ground floor at the reception
before entry.
3. The use of the “LeaveHomeSafe (LHS)” app is mandatory. You must also present a valid printed or digitally stored COVID-19 vaccination
record or Medical Exemption Certificate QR code as instructed by our staffers.
4. All Vaccine Pass (VP) requirements will be observed (unless
you are exempt):
for further details,
please click here.
5. The decisions of Alliance Francaise de Hong Kong will be final and prevails.