Cover The poster of Café I Do—The Leslie Cheung Musical (Image: courtesy of MQ Musical Theatre)
The poster of Café I Do—The Leslie Cheung Musical (Image: courtesy of MQ Musical Theatre)
1 / 1
‘Café I Do—The Leslie Cheung Musical’ bands together award-winning lyricist Chow Yiu-fai and composer Johnny Yim and will feature the Cantopop icon’s songs as well as an original theme number
Local theatre company MQ Musical Theatre will stage a new Broadway-style Cantonese musical called Café I Do—The Leslie Cheung Musical from August 16 to 25, 2024 at Grand Theatre, Xiqu Centre at West Kowloon. Featuring singing and dancing, live music, and LED screens and lighting effects, the show is dedicated to Cheung, the Canto-pop icon who influenced the cultural landscape of Hong Kong since the 1970s with his avant-garde, androgynous film roles, flamboyant stage presence and catchy love songs.
It tells the story of a pair of brothers fulfilling their late father’s wish to set up a small public concert dedicated to Cheung, who was their father’s idol, at their father’s café as a farewell event before it closes down. As different generations of visitors gather at the event, they celebrate the fond memories and legacy of this beloved pop icon.
Read more: Is Hong Kong becoming the ‘Broadway of the East’?
Above From left: Kimman Wong and Mischa Ip performing Till We Meet Again at the press conference (Photo: courtesy of MQ Musical Theatre)
From left: Kimman Wong and Mischa Ip performing Till We Meet Again at the press conference (Photo: courtesy of MQ Musical Theatre)
1 / 1
As well as fan-favourite songs such as Monica, H2O and A Thousand Dreams of You, the stage musical will feature new theme song Till We Meet Again, which is composed by Johnny Yim, an award-winning composer and producer who has written songs for Canto-pop stars such as Hins Cheung and Joey Yung. Yim also serves as the music director of this production, who is in charge of rearranging the composition of Cheung’s songs to fit the musical style of singing. The lyrics of the new song are written by award-winning lyricist Chow Yiu-fai.
Local singers Kimman Wong and Mischa Ip will take the lead roles; while the show also brings together a cast of theatrical performers including Freddy Au Yeung, Cissy Ma and Lucas Yung. In an exclusive interview with Tatler, the artistic director and producer Phyllis Kei says it’s daunting for anyone to play the larger-than-life role of Cheung, which suggests why the musical centres on how Cheung’s legacy plays a part in the memories of Hongkongers instead of having an actor portraying Cheung himself. The team tease, however, that Cheung will be part of the performance in a surprising way.
Wong adds in a press statement, “Gor Gor [an endearing way of addressing Cheung as "brother" in Cantonese] is forever a classic, so it’s a great challenge to sing his songs. As a Leslie fan myself, I have high expectations for myself and hope to perform well onstage to let audiences know and remember Leslie."
Above From left: Kimman Wong and Mischa Ip on set at the musical production's music video shoot in Hung Hom in late April, 2024 (Photo: Tatler Hong Kong)
From left: Kimman Wong and Mischa Ip on set at the musical production's music video shoot in Hung Hom in late April, 2024 (Photo: Tatler Hong Kong)
1 / 1
The team started working on the musical last year, which was the 20th anniversary of Cheung’s death. Their vision was to create a musical that represents the city and pass on the legacy of Hong Kong pop music and Cantonese musical to the next generations. “Just like how Broadway [in New York City] has the Michael Jackson-themed MJ—The Musical, Hong Kong will now have this Leslie Cheung musical,” says Kei, adding that there's a possibility of making it a long-running musical. “We aim to [put together] the best local resources and talents to produce a performance [on par with the international level].”
Aside from the production itself, the team is in collaboration with the Greater Bay Area Homeland Youth Community Foundation, a charitable organisation, to offer underprivileged students the chance to attend the musical's dress rehearsals. They are also in discussion with a local arts institution to set up a scholarship to support performing arts students.
Zabrina is the Senior Editor, Arts and Culture of Tatler Hong Kong. She specialises in performing arts, visual art and film. Her wanderlust was first fuelled by the Mighty Rovers Antarctica Expedition 2010. Over the years, she has interviewed A-list artists and filmmakers, including Oscar winners Chlóe Zhao and Tim Yip, Golden Horse winner Sylvia Chang, In the Mood for Love cinematographer Christopher Doyle, Pachinko author Min Jin Lee, and Coachella’s first Chinese solo singer Jackson Wang. She won gold at the WAN-IFRA Asian Media Awards for her 2021 feature on the waves of hate crimes targeting Asian Americans.
