Conversations
Leadership Talk — United Kingdom
Venue
Great Lawn, Art Park, West Kowloon Cultural District
Date and time (HKT)
16 Oct (Wed) 12:00
Pass holder
FULLDAYSTUDENT
Full pass holders, Day pass holders and Students pass holders are eligible to attend
Language
Simultaneous interpretation is available in English, Cantonese and Putonghua

Join us for a captivating series of leadership presentations featuring art leaders from around the world. These influential speakers will take you on a journey through their personal experiences and practices in their respective regions and countries. Gain valuable insights into the art world as these leaders will share their strategies and innovative approaches, allowing you to gain a deeper understanding of the art world and its ever-evolving scene.

Roy Luxford

Creative Director, Edinburgh International Festival

Roy Luxford

Roy is the Creative Director at the Edinburgh International Festival responsible creatively for the annual 25 day multi art-form festival. Prior to Edinburgh he produced theatre and dance internationally for the Barbican, Sadler’s Wells Theatre, The Young Vic, Brooklyn Academy of Music, Lincoln Center New York, Sydney 2000 Olympic Arts Festival, Chekhov Festival Moscow, and the Venice Biennale amongst many others.

He led three of the UK’s foremost producing companies Cheek by Jowl, Michael Clark Company, and DV8 Physical Theatre, and produced the European premiere of Tony Kushner’s Homebody/Kabul in London and Tim Supple’s version of One Thousand and One Nights for the Edinburgh International Festival.

Roy has worked with the European Festival Association’s Festival Academy as the professional lead on their Atelier for Young Producers and is also a member of UK Theatre, the UK’s theatre industry organisation.

Edinburgh International Festival

Edinburgh International Festival is the original Edinburgh festival igniting the spark which established Edinburgh as the world’s Festival City.

Founded in 1947, the International Festival was the inspired idea of Rudolf Bing, a cultural pioneer and a refugee of the second world war. He joined with civic and artistic leaders to create an event that would transcend political boundaries through a global celebration of performing arts in Scotland’s beloved capital city.

Over the following 76 years the International Festival has flourished, deepening our commitment to artistic excellence and cultural curiosity. Meanwhile, sister festivals have grown up around us, each of them contributing to the atmosphere of unparalleled excitement that transforms the city every summer.

We welcome the world to Edinburgh to experience our hand-picked programme of the finest performers in opera, music, theatre and dance. Through their artistry we create space for reflection and reconciliation, debate and celebration, bringing people of different cultures and viewpoints together.

John McGrath

Artistic Director & Chief Executive, Factory International

John McGrath

John McGrath is the Artistic Director and Chief Executive of Factory International, the company that runs Manchester’s recently-opened Aviva Studios and the Manchester International Festival and Factory Academy, as well as substantial online and international programmes. Before opening Aviva Studios in October 2023, he curated four editions of the Manchester International Festival, featuring new works by international artists including Yoko Ono, Philip Glass, Skepta, Ibrahim Mahama and Tania Bruguera. Prior to this, he was the founding Artistic Director of National Theatre Wales, where he directed such works as The Radicalisation of Bradley Manning and produced such shows as The Passion of Port Talbot and Coroilan/us. He has also led Manchester’s Contact Theatre, and was Associate Director at Mabou Mines in New York. McGrath has a PhD from New York University and an honorary doctorate from the Open University, and has published widely in the field of cultural theory.

Factory International

Factory International is the organisation behind the Manchester International Festival (MIF) and the city’s landmark new cultural space, Aviva Studios.

Producing an ambitious year-round programme of original creative works, music and special events, Factory International builds on the legacy of MIF, one of the world’s leading arts festivals and the first to be entirely focused on the commissioning and producing of ambitious new work. Audiences can enjoy the broadest range of art forms at Aviva Studios—the ultra-flexible new venue designed by the Office for Metropolitan Architecture (OMA)—as well as online, internationally and at the city-wide Festival held every other year. Rooted in Manchester, Factory International plays an important role in the lives of Greater Manchester residents, bringing jobs, training and creative opportunities. Through the Factory Academy, Factory International is training the creative workforce of the future, while its pioneering creative engagement and artist development programmes create year-round opportunities for artists and local people.

Dr. Joanna C. Lee (Moderator)

Founder, Museworks Limited

Dr. Joanna C. Lee (Moderator)

Dr. Joanna C. Lee has served as consultant and translator for such institutions as the Kennedy Center, Carnegie Hall and the New York Asian Film Festival. Since 2004, she is the regular host and interpreter at the Hong Kong International Film Festival and the Hong Kong-Asia Film Financing Forum. She was a publicity consultant for the “Big Five” American orchestras on their Asian tours as well as consulting producer for San Francisco Opera’s Dream of the Red Chamber. She is currently serving as outreach consultant for multiple Broadway and Off-Broadway productions in New York. She has served as an on-stage interpreter for former US President Jimmy Carter, Chinese director Jia Zhangke and artist Xu Bing, as well as provided opera surtitles for the China National Centre for the Performing Arts and the Beijing Music Festival. She is the English surtitle author for the Hong Kong Repertory Theatre since 2007.

Photo Credit: Lia Chang

Schedule for Leadership Talks

15 Oct 2024 (Tue) 16 Oct 2024 (Wed) 17 Oct 2024 (Thu) 18 Oct 2024 (Fri)
1045 – 1200
  • Kenneth Fok
    Chairman, Hong Kong Arts Development Council
  • Betty Fung
    CEO, West Kowloon Cultural District Authority
  • Eve Tam
    Deputy Director (Culture), Leisure and Cultural Services Department
  • Wilfred Wong
    Vice Chairman, Culture Commission
1045 – 1115
  • Pavla Petrová
    Director, Arts and Theatre Institute
1045 – 1200
  • Sultan AlBazie
    CEO, The Saudi Theater and Performing Arts Commission
  • Ashraf Alfagih
    Cultural Advisor, The King Abdulaziz Center for World Culture (Ithra)
  • Bill Bragin
    Executive Artistic Director, The Arts Center at NYU Abu Dhabi
  • Umberto Fanni
    Director General & Artistic Director, Royal Opera House Muscat
  • Farah Mattar
    Director General of Culture & Museums, Bahrain Authority for Culture and Antiquities
  • Cindy Hwang (Convenor)
    Founder and President, InPulse Creatives; Music Programmer Consultant, Ithra
1045 – 1115
  • H.R.H Princess Celenhle Dlamini
    Chairperson, National Arts Council of South Africa
1115 – 1200
  • Jan Briers
    President, European Festivals Association
1115 – 1200
  • Kai Amberla
    Executive Director, Finland Festivals
  • Vigdis Jakobsdottir
    Artistic Director & CEO, Reykjavik Arts Festival
1200 – 1245
  • Geng Jun
    President, Shenzhen A.C. Orange
  • Guo Wenpeng
    Deputy Secretary, Executive Director & General Manager, Poly Culture Group Corporation Limited
  • Li Jinsheng
    President, China Arts and Entertainment Group Limited
1200 – 1245
  • Roy Luxford
    Creative Director, Edinburgh International Festival
  • John McGrath
    Artistic Director & Chief Executive, Factory International
1200 – 1245
  • Rebecca Kezia
    Co-Initiator, Indonesia Producers Network of Performing Arts
  • Sasapin Siriwanij
    Artistic Director, Bangkok International Performing Arts Meeting (BIPAM)
  • Trà Nguyễn Bich
    Founder, The Run
  • Sokhorn Yon
    Programme Director, Cambodian Living Arts
  • E-Jan Tan(Moderator)
    Founder and Director, In Situ
1200 – 1245
  • Katherine Connor
    Executive Director, PAC Australia
  • John Kotzas
    Chief Executive, Queensland Performing Arts Centre
  • Annette Shun Wah
    Artistic Director, OzAsia Festival (2020-2023)
  • Douglas Gautier AM (Moderator)
    Chairman, Association of Asia Pacific Performing Arts Centres; CEO and Artistic Director, Adelaide Festival Centre

Remarks

  • Simultaneous interpretation is available in English, Cantonese and Putonghua.
  • Holders of the HKPAX Full Pass, Day Pass and Student Pass can access all sessions of Conversations. Spaces are available on a first-come, first-served basis. Online pre-registration is required.