Hong Kong Exile tunes into celestial stories at the Vancouver Art Gallery, May 15

As part of Asian Heritage Month, the gallery’s first performers-in-residence use old-school radios and headlamps in a new piece that fuses dance, multimedia, and theatre

By Isabelle Dina

HEAVEN FM. Photo by Natalie Tin Yan Gan

The Vancouver Art Gallery presents Hong Kong Exile’s HEAVEN FM on May 15 at 7 pm in Courtroom 302

AS PART OF A SERIES of Asian Heritage Month programming, the Vancouver Art Gallery is hosting the world premiere of Hong Kong Exile’s HEAVEN FM. 

The Vancouver troupe’s performance fuses dance, theatre, and multimedia. HEAVEN FM follows an expedition of five artists, equipped with headlamps and small radios, who travel toward the cusp of the universe and use their low-tech gear to listen in on stories from beyond our world. The work grapples with themes of loss, magic, and joy mashed together with life in the digital world. 

The hourlong performance, staged in one of the historic building’s former courtrooms, was created during a residency at the Vancouver Art Gallery from January to May, when Hong Kong Exile became the first performers-in-residence at the venue.

The inspiration for the piece was collective member Natalie Tin Yan Gan’s contemplation of Chinese ancestral customs as they exist in our digital age. The performance is also grounded in Hong Kong Exile’s 13 years of investigating the intersection of technology and performance. 

Gan’s collaborators in the company are Milton Lim and Remy Siu. Over the years, Hong Kong Exile has put together 13 works that have been performed across Canada and internationally.

Elsewhere, the Vancouver Art Gallery is offering everything from art tours and exhibitions to weaving workshops as part of Asian Heritage Month, wrapping it up with an Art Party on May 24 that will feature DJ sets, live performances, and immersive art exhibitions. 

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