Cover From left: Dayo Wong and Carina Lau at the press conference of ‘The Truth about Lying’ (Photo: Tatler Hong Kong)
From left: Dayo Wong and Carina Lau at the press conference of ‘The Truth about Lying’ (Photo: Tatler Hong Kong)
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This will be the first theatrical collaboration between Hong Kong award-winning actor Carina Lau, known for starring in Wong Kar-wai’s ‘Day of Being Wild’, and famed comedian Dayo Wong
Hong Kong’s theatre scene is abuzz with the news of award-winning film actor Carina Lau joining forces with pioneering standup comedian Dayo Wong in a play called The Truth about Lying, which is set to be performed at the Hong Kong Academy for Performing Arts in Wan Chai from December 13.
The show was written by local playwright Wong Wing-sze, who was inspired by the marital anecdotes of her friends. The play revolves around a divorce lawyer and a trainee solicitor who experience love, marriage and divorce on both personal and professional levels. It explores the forms that relationships can take in contemporary Hong Kong.
The playwright teases that Dayo Wong will have fewer dialogues in the play, which is uncommon in the comedian’s usual stage performances, while the audience will get to see Carina Lau in a vulnerable role.
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Above From left: Dayo Wong and Carina Lau in the poster of ‘The Truth about Lying’ (Image: Facebook/@thetruthaboutlying)
From left: Dayo Wong and Carina Lau in the poster of ‘The Truth about Lying’ (Image: Facebook/@thetruthaboutlying)
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Originally commissioned and produced by the Hong Kong Arts Festival in 2010, the show won Best Play at the Hong Kong Drama Awards in 2011. Since then, it has been re-run for four times and performed by different casts.
This fifth performance will mark Wong and Lau’s collaboration for the first time as actors and will run for 40 shows. It will also be Lau’s return to the theatre since her last stage performance in Witness for the Prosecution, a local production adapted from Agatha Christie’s 1925 short story by the same name, six years ago. For Wong, this show also adds to his recent move of branching out to the theatre, such as Show Me Your Love (2023) and One Last Gift (2022).
Above Dayo Wong and Carina Lau (centre) and the rest of the creative team at the press conference of ‘The Truth about Lying’ (Photo: Tatler Hong Kong)
Dayo Wong and Carina Lau (centre) and the rest of the creative team at the press conference of ‘The Truth about Lying’ (Photo: Tatler Hong Kong)
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In a press conference today, the comedian said he felt Lau is the perfect actor for the lead role. But when the creative team had reached out to Lau, she had apparently rejected the opportunity initially. She says, “I have been in a few theatre productions before and I love the theatre. The theatre is mysterious and powerful, but it can be a stressful experience. I want to be comfortable at this stage of my career.”
When her manager mentioned the comedian’s involvement, she reconsidered the offer and met the creative team earlier this year during Chinese New Year. In the end, she said “yes”.
“One must take challenges from time to time, and I don’t want to just stay still. And I hope to put on stage another good Hong Kong show, [especially one that’s] reflective of modern women’s experiences.”
Public tickets will go on sale on September 3. HSBC members get to enjoy advanced booking that starts on August 26.
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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.
