• 2025-04-26 15:33:37

In the first public performance, we invite the pioneering field of Sound Olympics and the six schools of The Hong Kong Academy for Performing Arts to join hands in creating the 40th anniversary classic Journey to the West-themed musical “My Buddha Has No Scripture”.

To celebrate the 40th Anniversary of The Hong Kong Academy for Performing Arts (HKAPA), the School of Drama of the Academy, together with the School of Dance, the School of Opera, the School of Film and Television, the School of Music and the School of Theatre and Production Arts, are jointly presenting the 40th Anniversary Key Musical, “My Buddha's Unwritten Sutra”, which will be staged at the Academy's Opera House;




YIAA is honored to be invited as the only guest of honor to spearhead the production! YIAA students and teachers will go to the Hong Kong Academy for Performing Arts (HKAPA) on May 5 to watch and learn about the musical, especially for those who intend to enroll in the Performing Arts Program, to learn more about Hong Kong's arts and culture, and about the cutting-edge stage performances and presentations of the Hong Kong Academy for Performing Arts.



-A new chapter of Journey to the West, one of China's four great masterpieces;




-The stage design integrates technology into the performing arts;




-With live accompaniment by the Hong Kong Academy for Performing Arts International Master Symphony Orchestra;





It is a unique experience for the audience to contemplate the true meaning of the Journey to the West.




Rehearsals for The Hong Kong Academy for Performing Arts (HKAPA) 40th Anniversary Musical “My Buddha's Unwritten Sutra” have officially begun! Teachers and students of The Hong Kong Academy for Performing Arts (HKAPA), in collaboration with alumni, embark on a brand new creative journey, joining hands to interpret the strange tale of the Journey to the West: what is the true meaning of the sutra under the seat of Rulai at the Great Thunderbolt Monastery? After the first script round-up reading, the team discovers that the truth is actually ...... 


Taken from the original Hong Kong Academy for Performing Arts musical:

After obtaining the scriptures, Tang Sanzang returns to Chang'an from the Great Thunderbolt Temple with his disciples Sun Wukong, Pigsy and Sha Wujing, only to find that things have changed. The Tang Dynasty is no longer the former Tang Dynasty, the Western Scriptures are not the Western Scriptures imagined, and even the relationship between the masters and disciples turns out to be different from the expected ...... to seek the scriptures and ask for advice, the Buddha is speechless, and realized that the Buddha has never been with the scriptures!


Screenplay: Zhang Feifan


Composer and Music Director: James Ho


Lyricist: Chung Chi Wing


Director: Huang Longbin


Choreographer: Shum Chi Yee


Conductor: Xu Wei En


Guest Performer: Lam Chak Kwan


Set Designer: Huang Yijun, Huang Leyao


Costume Designer: Raymond Lee, Guo Haixin


Lighting Designer: Chan Cheuk Wah


Sound Designer: Leung Po Wing


Video Designer: Cheung Wing Yin


Production Manager: Liu Huiying, Lin Qitong


Idea from “Journey to the West” and “Fetching the Western Scriptures”.


Time: 7:30pm


Venue: The Hong Kong Academy for Performing Arts Opera House


Language: Cantonese musical with English and Chinese subtitles


Host: The Hong Kong Academy for Performing Arts




Director, School of Drama, The Hong Kong Academy for Performing Arts

Directs this musical in person!


1

Director Introduction


Wong Lung-bun, currently the Associate Director of the School of Drama of the Hong Kong Academy for Performing Arts, graduated from the School of Drama of the Hong Kong Academy for Performing Arts with a Bachelor of Fine Arts (Honors) Degree, majoring in Acting, in 1997.


 In the same year, he joined the Chung Ying Theatre Company as a full-time actor, during which he has been in a number of performances.


 In 2008, she was awarded the Hong Kong Drama Association Scholarship to study in Australia and obtained a Master's Degree from the National Institute of Drama (Sydney, Australia), majoring in Physical Form. 






     2 About the Actor:




The casting of “The Buddha's Unwritten Sutra” is based on the growth stories of the six colleges. Six acting students from different cities and colleges are interviewed for the musical, and they share their personal journey from confusion to determination in their artistic paths through the review of their own studies and practices.




3 About the team:

Scriptwriter: Mr. Zhang Feifan, who has written several famous musicals such as “King of Scholarship” Composer and Music Director: John Ho, a multi-award winning musical composer;
Lyricist: Zhong Zhirong, who has written popular musicals such as “I have a date with spring”;
Guest Performer: Lam Chak Kwan as Tang San Zang, a former singer, entertainer and variety show host for Asia Television, who joined Cable TV in 1993 as host of the Youth Music Channel (YMC).
The stage design of the musical is a fusion of modern technology and traditional art, created by set designers Wong Yat Kwan and Wong Lok Yiu, costume designers Raymond Lee and Kwok Hoi Yan, and lighting designer Chan Cheuk Wah, presenting an audio-visual feast to the audience.


4 Why did you choose the journey to the west to get the real scriptures as the theme of the 40th anniversary musical?


As one of the Four Great Masterpieces of China, Journey to the West tells the story of the Tang Sanzang and his four disciples who went through 981 difficulties to obtain the scriptures. Based on the Journey to the West, this musical depicts the journey of the masters and disciples as they return to Chang'an after obtaining the true scriptures;



It also incorporates The Taking of the Western Scriptures: the Buddhist classic The Taking of the Western Scriptures tells the story of the process and significance of obtaining the scriptures, from which the musical draws its inspiration, exploring the true meaning of obtaining the scriptures as well as the changing relationship between master and disciple.




In fact, the true meaning of Journey to the West does not emphasize much on Buddhist culture and the cultural significance of fetching scriptures, nor does it lead the audience to a deeper understanding - what is the true meaning of the true scriptures that the three masters and disciples, Tang Sanzang and Tang Sanzang, travel to the West to obtain? The Hong Kong Academy for Performing Arts (HKAPA) would like to reintroduce a new understanding of the masterpiece musical in a different way, so that people will know that the original Journey to the West to obtain the scriptures as we know it is not so perfect.




The Hong Kong Academy for Performing Arts (HKAPA) is Asia's No. 1 and the world's Top 13 theatre and performance academy with a world-class School of Film, Television and Television and a School of Theatre and Production Arts, the Drama and Performance Programme equips students to become visionaries in the arts and to focus on the importance, relevance and development of the arts in the community.Established in 1984, HKAPA is the only academy specializing in nurturing talents in the performing arts in Hong Kong, and the highest academic institution of the arts in the territory. It is also the highest academic institution in the field of the arts in Hong Kong. The main campus is located at 1 Gloucester Road North, Wan Chai, Hong Kong Island, near the Hong Kong Arts Centre. In addition, the Bethanie Monument Campus in Pokfulam has also been the location of the Academy of Film and Television's training facilities since 2006 Faculties and Departments are set up in six major colleges:




School of Chinese Opera: The School focuses on the performing arts of Cantonese Opera, as well as Peking Opera, Kunqu Opera and other local operas. The curriculum is supplemented by subjects on Chinese culture and literature with the aim of preserving, revitalizing and developing traditional performing arts.


School of Dance: The School of Dance offers three major areas of specialization: Ballet, Chinese Dance and Modern Dance, combining theory and practice, and integrating technique, choreography and performance.


School of Drama: offers courses in Drama Acting, Musical Theatre Acting, and Applied Theatre, with students honing their skills through on-campus workshops and public performances.


School of Film and Television: offers a four-year degree program in Film and Television from the basics to the more in-depth level, with six major disciplines designed to teach students techniques related to film and television production and to enhance their artistic and creative potential.


School of Music: Students participate in various types of concerts every year, including the Concerts for the Performing Arts at the Government House, engagements by professional orchestras, and solo performances in various public and private occasions.


School of Theatre and Production Arts (SOPA): SOPA offers professional and creativity-inspiring postgraduate and undergraduate programs in a wide range of areas, including science production, media production arts, and production management.


The Hong Kong Academy for Performing Arts (HKAPA) is committed to building an international platform for young artists. Its six Schools of Theatre, Dance, Drama, Film and Television, Music, and Theatre and Production Arts are not only unique in the industry, but also demonstrate a multifaceted creative energy through interdisciplinary collaboration.



As the first academy in the Greater Bay Area to set a benchmark for the arts, YAO Academy has carried out many visits and exchanges with the Hong Kong Academy for Performing Arts. The Hong Kong Academy for Performing Arts is renowned for its professionalism, international outlook, and rich artistic resources for its musicals, which have attracted many students interested in the performing arts.






-Exciting Preview:


The Hong Kong Academy for Performing Arts 2025 Summer Camp!



YIAA-Performing Arts Program

The BTEC Performing Arts Program at YIAA has trained outstanding students who are qualified for majors such as HKAPA Musical Theatre. If you also want to travel to, and enroll in, the Hong Kong Academy for Performing Arts, you can contact and ask us for advice! YIAA will help students who are interested in applying for the performing arts to better understand the arts culture, further education and study content in Hong Kong.