Organised by the Cultural Affairs Bureau (IC, from the Portuguese acronym), the 35^th Macao Arts Festival will kick off with the opening performance Life of Pi on 25 April (Friday). The opening ceremony will be held at 7:45pm on the same day in the lobby of the Macao Cultural Centre. The organiser held a press meeting at the Macao Cultural Centre today (23 April), in which the male protagonist Kashif Ghole (who plays young Pi), the Resident Puppetry and Movement Director Tom Stacy, the Resident Director Gabriella Bird, the puppet of the Bengal tiger, as well as the puppeteers Tom Norman, Jasmine Chiu and Kate Rowsell, met with the media to share their thoughts and present the highlights of the show. In the afternoon of the same day, the cast of the stage production also conducted a roadshow at the Ruins of St. Paul’s to liven up the atmosphere for the opening on Friday.

Adapted from the novel by Canadian author Yann Martel, the spectacular stage production Life of Pi, which has swept across the West End in London and Broadway in New York, combines cutting-edge stagecraft with astonishing puppetry to create a fantastic journey for the public. The show won five prestigious Olivier Awards, including the Best Actor in a Supporting Role, awarded to several puppeteers who played the Bengal tiger “Richard Parker”, whose delicate manipulation brought the puppets to life. The production team employs a revolving stage, projections, special lighting and sound effects to create stunning visual effects that meticulously switch the scenes in the production, vividly presenting a turbulent adventure that merges fantasy and reality with the combination of the magnificent puppetry skills. The performance will be held at the Macao Cultural Centre Grand Auditorium on 25 and 26 April, at 8pm, and on 27 April, at 3pm.

Limited tickets are still available at the Enjoy Macao Ticketing. For more information about the programmes, ticket purchase and discounts, please visit the MAF’s website (www.icm.gov.mo/fam), follow the respective page on Facebook (search “Macao Arts Festival”), or subscribe to IC’s official WeChat account (IC_Art_Macao). 24-hour ticketing hotline: 2840 0555. Online ticket reservation is available at ticketing.enjoymacao.mo.