This summer, the Hong Kong Repertory Theatre (HKRep) takes a bold leap into the future of live performance with The Story of K City, a theatrical experience that is as much a meditation on memory and modernity as it is an innovative spectacle. A devised work based on the fantasy novella by HKRep Artistic Director Poon Wai Sum, this production reimagines what it means to tell stories on stage by weaving together text, technology, and emotion in a multisensory celebration of urban life.
From July 29 to August 10, audiences stepping into The Box at Freespace, West Kowloon Cultural District, won’t just be spectators; they’ll be dreamers wandering the surreal and sensorial corridors of K City, where memory, melancholy, and hope intersect in a world shaped by poetry, projection, and performance.
A City of Emotions and Echoes
At its heart, The Story of K City is an exploration of the intangible relationships we form with the cities we inhabit, those silent companions to our lives that witness our laughter, our loneliness, and everything in between. The central character, aptly named Forget-Me-Not, becomes our guide through this wistful metropolis. Her journey touches on the bittersweet beauty of childhood joys, the ache of being forgotten, and the quiet solitude that often lingers in the margins of urban existence.
Audiences are invited to walk alongside Forget-Me-Not as she observes the city and its people, navigating memories that shimmer and shift like sunlight on glass. Whether the moment is fast and frenzied or hushed and still, the production crafts a rhythm that feels less like traditional narrative and more like a living, breathing poem. One moment, viewers might be engulfed in a storm of imagery and sound; the next, they may find themselves suspended in an ocean of silence.
Where Text Meets Technology
More than a conventional play, The Story of K City is a masterclass in art tech innovation. Under the visionary direction of Travis Preston, former Dean of the CalArts School of Theater and Founding Artistic Director of the CalArts Center for New Performance, the production blurs the lines between stage and screen, between physicality and projection. The team employs a dynamic combination of real-time video, motion tracking, 3D soundscapes, AI image processing, and expressive lighting to create a stage that responds and evolves with the story.
This is not merely spectacle for spectacle’s sake. Preston’s approach to directing is deeply rooted in emotional truth and sensory depth. “When Poon Wai Sum gave me his story to consider as the source of a performance, I knew immediately that it was an opportunity to create a visual poem of profound emotional impact,” he explains. “Text, music, movement, video, and scenography contribute equally to the building of the imaginative landscape of K City.”
The result is a uniquely immersive production where every element, spoken word, projection, and movement works in concert to shape a dreamscape that is as visceral as it is ethereal.
A Devised Theatre of Collaboration
While the concept originated with Poon Wai Sum’s novella, the production itself emerged through a collaborative devising process, a method of theatrical creation that invites actors, designers, and directors to build the performance together. This process breathes freshness and flexibility into the piece, allowing the actors to shape their roles in relation to the evolving aesthetics of the production.
The ensemble cast, featuring Mercy Wong, Karrie Tan, Cheung Ka Ying, Ng Ka Leung, Yu Hon Ting, Wong Hiu Yee, Luk Ka Ki, Eva Mak, Dee To, Angus Chan, Kalok Chan, Chan Kiu, Poon Tai Ming, Eddy Au Yeung, and Trickle Choi bring this living city to life with sensitivity and depth. Their performances blend spoken poetry with movement and musicality, their bodies and voices becoming the conduits through which K City breathes.
A Story Rooted in Vision and Legacy
The foundation of this theatrical marvel is Poon Wai Sum, whose career has long straddled the roles of playwright, educator, and now artistic director. Before taking the helm at HKRep in 2023, Poon served as Dean of the School of Drama at the Hong Kong Academy for Performing Arts and led the Prospects Theatre Company for nearly two decades. His numerous accolades, including the Drama Practitioner Annual Achievement Award and the Award for Arts Achievement, speak to a lifelong commitment to shaping Hong Kong’s dramatic landscape.
In discussing the origins of this production, Poon recalls, “Director Travis Preston is an expert in utilizing art tech on stage. When we first discussed this collaboration, he requested an innovative script, and I provided him with K City. Only after his selection of this novella did I admit to him I was the author.”
That gesture, offering the story without the weight of authorship, speaks to Poon’s humility and collaborative spirit. It also underscores how deeply this project is rooted in trust, creativity, and shared vision.
A Global Director for a Local Tale
Travis Preston’s involvement infuses the production with an international sensibility. Known for his boundary-pushing work across Europe, Asia, and the United States, Preston brings a global flair to the production without compromising the local intimacy of Poon’s narrative. His past productions, ranging from Macbeth in London to Prometheus Bound in Los Angeles and American Mother in Germany, demonstrate a knack for merging the classical and the contemporary.
By collaborating with HKRep, Preston has crafted a deeply local story that resonates universally. “Together they open radically unique possibilities to expand and enrich the tools of theatrical storytelling,” he says of the HKRep ensemble.
A Theatrical Event Not to Be Missed
The Story of K City is more than just a play, it’s an experience. It’s a call to feel more deeply, to see more clearly, and to listen more intently to the rhythms of city life and the poetry that lies just beneath its surface.
Running from July 29 to August 10 at The Box, Freespace, West Kowloon, the production is funded by the Arts Technology Funding Pilot Scheme of the Hong Kong SAR Government and presented in collaboration with POPTICKET.HK.
Whether you come for the technology, the artistry, or the sheer beauty of the story, The Story of K City offers something rare: a theatrical mirror held up not just to the city, but to our own inner landscapes, haunted, hopeful, and wholly human.
