Review-The Legend of Mulan-Hong Kong Dance Company
24-11-13
By: Leeann Bennett
If you don’t know the story of Mulan, first let me congratulate you on having finally left that cave where you have hidden in the dark, studiously avoiding the animated adaption that Disney gave to a generation of young girls. Mulan is the story of a girl who pretends to be a man so she can join the army in the place of her weak and ailing father. By taking his place, she saves his life and then helps to save her people.
Stories of women parading as men abound in history as well as mythology, but the story of Mulan is far more compelling for reasons that she did it out of love and because she succeeded so brilliantly. It’s a story for children and adults. The tale is so old that its origins are lost in time but it still holds sway over our imaginations today.
The Hong Kong Dance Company are not the first to try and tell her tale and won’t be the last. The question is, were they successful? Time has made Mulan into a legend as rich as it is classic. Could the scope of this tale be conveyed on stage?
I will start by saying that, at times, their success seemed precarious. Occasionally the silences were a little stretched, long enough for discordant coughs to echo. The music was almost maudlin when Mulan was with her father, the soldiers flinging themselves against invisible assailants almost strange, the battlefield of fallen furniture almost funny. However, I will stop here because really, it worked. Really, it did. The Hong Kong Dance company has delivered a sweeping epic.
Each act was preceded by a recital of part of the ballad by school children in Chinese: for those (like me) who don’t speak the language, best refer to the program. The youthful tots served to remind the origins of this tale. Then the lights come up and I was transported. The set design is simple but effective but it was the lighting that really sold it for me - kudos to designer Yeung Tsz-yan - painting each scene, from tall mountains and bloody battlefields to sunlight streaming in through imaginary windows.
Pan Lingjuan was beautiful as Mulan, if perhaps a tad too pretty - but then, as an audience member, you must never forget that, underneath the armour and masculine posturing, she’s really just a girl who never wanted to fight except to save her father.
The children were adorable when they recited the story, when they sang at the end and when those delightful girls danced with feathers on their heads. You could not help but smile.
Lest we forget, the story of Mulan is also a story about the brutality and awfulness of war - but they also had children in the cast. How to convey the horrors of war without shocking half the cast members? Clever choreography, lighting and music, allied with great performances, created something actually very impressive. Even as soldiers fought against unseen enemies, felled by invisible weapons, you worried for them. As Mulan staggered through a battleground strewn with the slain figures of fallen chairs, you felt her anguish and homesickness. When she returned home to reunite with her father, your heart swelled. Credit goes to Yang Yuntao, Director and Choreographer, along with the entire team of cast and crew.
The Legend of Mulan is a timeless tale that has something to teach all of us. It's a story about a girl going to war but ultimately it’s a story about what a girl might do for love and the value of peace. The Hong Kong Dance Company have delivered a beautiful presentation that is well worth (at $180 - $300) the ticket price. If you can make any of these performances, I would absolutely recommend it.
The Legend of Mulan is playing at the Hong Kong Cultural Center through the 24th. Next week's performances of the show will be at the Yuen Long Theatre in the New Territories. For more information, click here.
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