Hong Kong : The Facts - Leisure and Culture

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Hong Kong residents have access to a wide range of sports, recreational and cultural facilities. Many of these are built and managed by the Leisure and Cultural Services Department (LCSD). The main objective of the department is to enrich the community’s quality of life through the promotion and provision of recreational and cultural facilities and activities.

Leisure Services: The LCSD provides facilities to foster public participation in recreation and sports activities and organises a wide range of programmes. It also beautifies the environment through planting of trees and other plants in public parks and amenity areas.

Recreational and Sports Venues: There are a great number of facilities to provide leisure services, including 25 sports grounds, 45 swimming pool complexes, 42 gazetted bathing beaches, 105 sports centres, 83 turf pitches, 240 hard-surfaced mini-soccer pitches, 538 basketball courts, 250 tennis courts, 291 squash courts and 680 leisure venues providing children's playgrounds. Other facilities such as hockey pitches, horse riding schools and golf driving ranges are also provided. The LCSD also manages five water sports centres (Stanley Main Beach, St Stephen’s Beach, Chong Hing, The Jockey Club Wong Shek and Tai Mei Tuk) and four holiday camps (Lei Yue Mun Park, Lady MacLehose Holiday Village, Sai Kung and Tso Kung Tam Outdoor Recreation Centres). The 12 500-seat Hong Kong Coliseum and the 3 500-seat Queen Elizabeth Stadium are the focal points for important indoor sporting events while the 40 000-seat Hong Kong Stadium is a major venue for staging large-scale sporting and spectator events.

Recreation and Sports Activities: The LCSD organises and promotes various leisure activities for people of all ages. In 2023-24, the department organised some 35 200 recreation and sports activities for about 2 060 000 participants of all ages and abilities.

 To encourage the public to improve their health through participating in physical activities and sports, the LCSD and the Department of Health jointly organised the Healthy Exercise for All Campaign. About 1 200 programmes were organised in 2023-24. These attracted over 96 800 participants in total. Those programmes included Dance Night under Dance for Health, QualiWalk, Hiking Scheme, Rope Skipping Activities, Fitness Training Courses for Children and Outreach Fitness Programmes for Persons with Disabilities and the Elderly. Besides, the LCSD produced some health education and physical exercise-related materials in the form of leaflets, booklets, and a series of Hiking Scheme and exercise demonstration videos, which were also uploaded onto a dedicated webpage in the LCSD website, so as to encourage a healthy lifestyle through regular participation in physical activities and sports.

To intensify the promotion of Sport for All in the community and to support the National Fitness Day, the LCSD organised the Sport For All Day in August 2023. With fitness exercise as the focal sport, various related sports participation sessions were offered for the public. A series of free sports and recreation programmes were also offered at designated LCSD venues across the 18 districts, while most of the LCSD leisure facilities were open for free use by the public to enhance public interest in sporting activities and encourage the pursuit of a healthy lifestyle through regular participation in sporting and physical exercises. Sports demonstrations were webcasted through the dedicated webpage and online platforms on that day, with a view to encouraging members of the public to exercise at home.

The Sports Subvention Scheme provides financial assistance to National Sports Associations (NSAs) and Sports Organisations (SOs) for organising sports programmes and training athletes. In 2023-24, the scheme provided subventions for NSAs and SOs to organise some 11 360 sports promotion events for about 783 080 participants. The scheme includes the Young Athletes Training Scheme to identify talented young players and District Sports Teams Training Scheme for enhancing a stronger sense of belonging among residents.

The School Sports Programme and the Community Sports Club Project, launched by the department, have been further promoting sports and cultivating a new sport culture in Hong Kong. The aim of the two programmes is to provide more opportunities for students and members of the public to participate in sports. In 2023-24, more than 7 000 School Sports Programmes were organised with around 520 300 students participating. Subsidies were granted for community sports clubs to organise about 3 140 sports development programmes for some 63 680 participants.

Hong Kong Games (HKG): With a view to further promoting Sport for All in the community, the LCSD collaborated with the Sports Commission and its Community Sports Committee, 18 District Councils, the Sports Federation & Olympic Committee of Hong Kong, China and the relevant NSAs to hold the HKG biennially from 2007 onwards. The 9th HKG was held from 2023 to 2024, featuring eight sports competitions, namely athletics, badminton, 3-on-3 basketball, futsal, swimming, table tennis, tennis and volleyball. The four events of the sports competitions for people with disabilities include wheelchair 3-on-3 basketball, boccia, and swimming and table tennis for people with intellectual disabilities. The four Urban Sports Demonstration Competitions that are popular among young people include women's futsal, breaking, skateboarding and sport climbing. Apart from sports competitions, a series of diversified community participation programmes have been organised for the participation by the general public at large.

Horticulture and Landscape Services: The LCSD is responsible for improving the environment with landscape planting, beautification schemes and tree preservation. It manages 1 689 parks and gardens of various sizes, including 26 major parks throughout Hong Kong.

Since 2000, the LCSD has been holding the annual Hong Kong Flower Show at Victoria Park. The show is a highlight in the local horticultural calendar. It provides a good opportunity for hundreds of thousands of local citizens and plant lovers from all over the world to appreciate the beauty of flowers and share their experiences in horticulture. Featuring gorgeous landscape displays and beautiful floral arrangements, the show also offers a rich diversity of fringe activities for the enjoyment of visitors of all ages including music and cultural performances, floral art demonstrations, guided tours, horticultural talks, drawing and photo competitions, green activities workshops and fun games. The show held at Victoria Park in March 2024 drew over 650 000 local and overseas visitors.

To enhance public awareness about greening the environment, a series of interesting and educational green activities such as Green Volunteer Scheme, Greening School Subsidy Scheme, ‘One Person, One Flower’ Scheme, Community Garden Programme, Community Planting Day, Horticulture Education Exhibition, horticultural courses and seminars are also organised for public participation every year.

Cultural Services: The LCSD provides a wide range of performance facilities, cultural and entertainment programmes to promote the development and appreciation of performing and visual arts. Apart from managing 17 performance venues, the department also stages presentations of various art forms as well as international festivals and arts education activities. It offers concessionary discounts to full-time students, senior citizens and people with disabilities.

 

Major Performance Venues:

Hong Kong Cultural Centre: Opened in 1989, the Hong Kong Cultural Centre has since been a major performing arts venue attracting overseas leading artists and local major performing companies, and a prime performance venue for large-scale arts festivals. It houses a 1 971-seat Concert Hall, a 1 734-seat Grand Theatre and a 303-496 seat Studio Theatre.

Hong Kong City Hall: Established in 1962, the Hong Kong City Hall is the first multi-purpose cultural complex built to enhance the quality of life in the Hong Kong community. With its simple design and emphasis on function, Hong Kong City Hall is an outstanding example of modernist architecture and one of Hong Kong’s landmarks. The complex was declared a monument in May 2022. Hong Kong City Hall plays a vital role in popularising the arts and promoting Eastern and Western cultures. Its facilities include a 1 430-seat Concert Hall, a 463-seat Theatre, a Recital Hall, an Exhibition Hall and an Exhibition Gallery.

Yau Ma Tei Theatre: The Theatre was constructed in 1930 and is a Grade 2 historic building. The Theatre and the adjacent Red Brick Building (Grade 1 historic building) have been revitalised as a performance base dedicated to Chinese opera performances and activities, and as a training and performance venue for budding Cantonese opera talents. It was reopened in 2012 to house a 300-seat Theatre. The venue has been temporarily closed for the construction of Yau Ma Tei Theatre Phase 2.

Hong Kong Coliseum and Queen Elizabeth Stadium: Opened in 1980 and 1983 respectively, the 3 500-seat Queen Elizabeth Stadium and the 12 500-seat Hong Kong Coliseum are two well-equipped multi-purpose indoor stadia most suitable for large-scale sports, cultural and entertainment programmes. The Coliseum in particular is a leading venue for major international sports events, cultural and entertainment spectaculars such as pop concerts.

Other Venues: Other performance venues in the territory including Sha Tin Town Hall, Tsuen Wan Town Hall, Tuen Mun Town Hall, Kwai Tsing Theatre, Yuen Long Theatre, Sheung Wan Civic Centre, Sai Wan Ho Civic Centre, Ngau Chi Wan Civic Centre, Ko Shan Theatre and New Wing, North District Town Hall and Tai Po Civic Centre are the foci for cultural activities in the community level.

Cultural Festivals and Performances: Cultural life of Hong Kong is enriched by the year-round cultural and entertainment programmes organised by the LCSD. The LCSD strives to present world-class programmes by top-notch overseas artists to broaden the horizons of arts practitioners and audience as well as to promote Hong Kong as an international cultural metropolis. The LCSD presented numerous visiting and local programmes in 2023-24 involving 750 performances with an attendance of around 260 000. Highlights included New York Philharmonic concerts, China Broadcasting Chinese Orchestra performances, the Duo Recital by Yo-Yo Ma (cello) and Kathryn Stott (piano), ‘Tan Dun WE-Festival’, drama Blossoms (Part I) performed in Shanghai dialect, The Journey of a Legendary Landscape Painting by China Oriental Performing Arts Group, Hachioji Kuruma Ningyo by the Koryu Nishikawa Troupe from Japan and Passengers by The 7 Fingers from Canada. Furthermore, to support the development of local arts and arts practitioners, the LCSD organised different types of branded programme series including ‘City Hall Virtuosi’, ‘Our Music Talents’, ‘New Force in Motion’, ‘Dance On’, ‘New Energy’, ‘Solo Play’ and ‘Cheers!’ that received positive feedback from professionals and the general audience alike. The LCSD produced nearly 20 episodes of online programmes under the ‘Click for Arts’, in order to broaden the public’s knowledge of the arts. The series covered an array of programmes ranging from performances to arts appreciation.

The LCSD also organised the annual Chinese Opera Festival from June to August which featured a variety of operatic genres to promote Chinese operatic art. The 11th edition in 2023 was opened by the Peking Opera Theatre of Beijing. The grand finale of the Festival was ‘Bless This Land’ – Cantonese Opera Showcase under the Bamboo Theatre at Victoria Park’. The annual Cantonese Opera Day, which showcases the achievements of young talents in preserving the culture of Cantonese opera was held in November. Meanwhile, the annual ‘International Arts Carnival’ (IAC) held in July and August provided children and their families with fun-filled cultural programmes and interactive activities during summer, and the New Vision Arts Festival (NVAF) held in October and November introduced to Hong Kong audiences pioneering and groundbreaking performing arts programmes from around the world. In 2023-24, both IAC and NVAF featured live performances, online programmes, as well as extension activities such as exhibitions and workshops by local and visiting artists, with more than 130 live performances and activities attracting around 58 000 participants, and 12 episodes of online programmes drawing about 370 000 views. Moreover, to develop Hong Kong into an East-meets-West centre for international cultural exchange in an all-round approach under the auspices of the National 14th Five-Year Plan, the inaugural ‘Asia+ Festival’ (Festival) was launched in October and November. Presented by the Culture, Sports and Tourism Bureau and organised by the LCSD, the Festival celebrated the cultural diversity of Asia and the Belt and Road regions, showcasing their unique arts and cultures through a variety of events, including the highlight programme ’Asian Ethnic Cultural Performances’ which was supported by Consulates and overseas cultural organisations in Hong Kong. About 30 performances and activities were held, attracting more than 62 000 participants. For celebrating major traditional festivals, the ‘Mid-Autumn and Lunar New Year Lantern Carnivals’ were organised which had attracted about 1 130 000 participants.

To promote Hong Kong’s pop culture, the LCSD has been collaborating with industry stakeholders to organise the annual ‘Hong Kong Pop Culture Festival’ (PCF) since 2023. Through a diverse range of programmes, the PCF aims to showcase the multifaceted aspects of Hong Kong's pop culture. The inaugural PCF was launched in April with 21 programmes presented/sponsored by LCSD in collaboration with more than 40 organisations. With the participation of around 150 performing artists/groups, the PCF featured over 200 activities, attracting an audience of around 530 000 in person and 75 000 online.

On top of these cultural and entertainment events, audience building and arts education activities were also presented together with local arts groups and educational and district organisations to promote arts appreciation in the community and schools. About 1 240 arts education and audience building activities were organised, attracting more than 190 000 participants. To further promote arts development and enhance the artistic ambience in the community, the LCSD had extended the Community Arts Scheme to all 18 districts since 2021-22. In 2023-24, activities organised under this scheme had attracted more than 98 000 participants and viewership of over 28 000, with more than 700 activities and 32 online programmes presented. On cultural exchange, to enable audience in the Mainland and around the globe to appreciate the arts and culture of Hong Kong as well as to strengthen cultural ties with different regions, the LCSD presented the ‘Hong Kong Week 2023@Bangkok’ in October to November 2023 in Thailand showcasing nine programmes with a total of 62 activities including stage performances, film screenings, thematic exhibitions and audience building activities, attracting a total attendance of more than 780 000. In 2023-24, the LCSD also collaborated with its partners in the Greater Bay Area to present 114 online programmes / in-venue performances / activities that attracted over 25 000 attendance and over 440 000 viewership. Moreover, the first Hong Kong Ambassador for Cultural Promotion, Tan Dun, led ten local young artists to participate in thirteen international performances in 2023, attracting an audience of over 18 000.

The LCSD actively promotes the appreciation and development of film art and supports the introduction of high-quality Chinese and Western films through thematic programmes like the International Children's and Youth Film Carnival, !NSPIRE Series: Multiverse in Film Arts, !magine Fest and Chinese Film Panorama. It also offers audience building activities and support to Consulates-Generals, film and media arts organisations and cultural institutes in presenting film programmes, facilitating Hong Kong's position as an East-meets-West centre for international cultural exchange. In 2023-24, the LCSD organised around 340 film and media arts activities, attracting over 45 000 audiences.

 The Hong Kong Arts Festival Society presented the 52nd Hong Kong Arts Festival in 2024 featuring over 1 400 acclaimed visiting and local artists in more than 150 performances of 47 programmes.

Music Office: Established in 1977, the Music Office promotes knowledge and appreciation of music in the community, especially among young people, through the provision of instrumental and ensemble training and the organisation of diverse music activities with a view to building a new generation of concert audiences. In 2023-24, it provided music training to more than 7 700 trainees and organised over 390 live activities attracting more than 175 000 participants and about 30 online programmes with over 14 000 participants/viewership.

URBTIX: Since its inception in 1984, URBTIX (Urban Ticketing System) has become one of the most widely-used ticketing systems in Hong Kong offering convenient and reliable ticketing services for the public through its wide network of 17 outlets, self-service ticketing kiosks and via internet, mobile app and telephone booking services. In 2023-24, $1,129 million was processed through URBTIX for around 3.8 million tickets for some 7 000 performances.

Other Performance Venues and Performing Companies in Hong Kong:

Hong Kong Arts Centre (HKAC), established in 1977, is a non-profit organisation operating under a self-financing model, devoting itself to the development of contemporary arts and cultures for years. HKAC’s main building in Wan Chai is equipped with facilities including theatres, a cinema, galleries, classrooms, studios and restaurants, providing a wide range of programmes featuring performing arts, visual arts, film and video arts every month while planning public art projects, conferences and more. Hong Kong Art School (HKAS) under HKAC is an accredited institute established in 2000. The award-bearing curriculum offered by HKAS focuses mainly on the area of fine art (ceramics, painting, photography and sculpture), with academic levels ranging from Higher Diploma to Bachelor Degree.

The Hong Kong Academy for Performing Arts, established in 1984, offers professional education, training and research facilities in the performing arts: music, dance, drama, theatre and entertainment arts, film and television, and Chinese opera. Its education philosophy reflects Hong Kong’s cultural diversity underscored by Chinese and Western traditions, and an emphasis on interdisciplinary learning.

In 2023-24, the academy enrolled 902 students for undergraduate and post-secondary programmes in its six performing arts disciplines, and attracted 161 students to pursue master’s degree programmes in dance, music, drama, film and television, and theatre and entertainment arts. It admitted more than 769 students to its junior programmes and around 717 students to its Extension and Continuing Education for Life programme.

Major Performing Arts Companies:

The Hong Kong Philharmonic Orchestra, became fully professional in 1974, is the first and largest professional symphony orchestra in Hong Kong that presents a broad-based repertoire, including classical music and contemporary works.

The Hong Kong Chinese Orchestra, founded in 1977, is the only professional Chinese orchestra in Hong Kong that presents symphonic music based on traditional folk repertoire and full-scale contemporary compositions.

Hong Kong Sinfonietta, founded in 1999, is a professional orchestra which presents a broad-based repertoire (including standard classical music, contemporary works, original crossover productions) and provides accompaniment to ballet and opera performances.

The Hong Kong Repertory Theatre, established in 1977, is a professional theatre company that produces a diverse repertoire of Chinese and overseas classics, and develops quality local works.

Chung Ying Theatre Company, founded in 1979, is a professional theatre company dedicated to creating high quality theatrical productions and promoting theatrical arts education through diversified activities.

Zuni Icosahedron, founded in 1982, is a multimedia experimental theatre company that makes creative attempts in the various aspects of theatre, and participates in arts education, arts criticism and international cultural exchanges.

The Hong Kong Dance Company, founded in 1981, is a professional Chinese dance company which aims to promote Chinese dance and dance drama in a unique Hong Kong style.

Hong Kong Ballet, founded in 1978, is a professional dance company which presents a broad-based repertoire, including classical ballets, contemporary works and original productions.

City Contemporary Dance Company, founded in 1979, is a professional modern dance company that nurtures talents in the contemporary dance field. It also actively stages performances overseas.

Heritage and Museums: The LCSD endeavours to provide and develop museums and related services to build up historic, art and science collections, preserve local cultural heritage and promote public appreciation for it.

The LCSD manages two art museums – Hong Kong Museum of Art and Flagstaff House Museum of Tea Ware; two science and technology museums – Hong Kong Science Museum and Hong Kong Space Museum; nine history and folk museums – Hong Kong Museum of History, Hong Kong Museum of Coastal Defence, Dr Sun Yat-sen Museum, Lei Cheng Uk Han Tomb Museum, Law Uk Folk Museum, Sheung Yiu Folk Museum, Sam Tung Uk Museum, Hong Kong Railway Museum and Fireboat Alexander Grantham Exhibition Gallery; a cross-disciplinary museum – Hong Kong Heritage Museum; Hong Kong Visual Arts Centre and Oi! art space of the Art Promotion Office; and Hong Kong Film Archive.

The Hong Kong Museum of Art plays an important role in bringing to Hong Kong a multicultural vision of world art and culture through exhibition programmes with an international perspective. The Hong Kong Science Museum, with its predominantly interactive exhibits, illustrates various scientific principles and the ways technology is used to improve the quality of life. The Hong Kong Space Museum serves to popularise astronomy and space science. The Hong Kong Heritage Museum features a variety of specially designed exhibition possibilities to cover different aspects of history, arts and culture. The Hong Kong Museum of History collects, conserves, processes, studies and displays cultural objects which are closely related to the history and ethnography of Hong Kong and the South China area. The Hong Kong Film Archive acquires, preserves, and documents Hong Kong films and related materials, enhancing public appreciation and understanding of films through organising screenings, exhibitions and seminars, as well as carrying out research projects and compiling publications. The Art Promotion Office is responsible for the promotion of public and community art in Hong Kong. The Intangible Cultural Heritage Office is responsible for the safeguarding, research and promotion of the intangible cultural heritage of Hong Kong.

The LCSD museums organise large-scale thematic exhibitions every year as well as year-round extension activities to raise interest and popularise museum services. Major exhibitions organised in 2023-24 included Joan Miró – The Poetry of Everyday Life, A Tale of Three Cities: Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area and Export of Silk Products in the Ming and Qing Dynasties, Titian and the Venetian Renaissance from the Uffizi, Miss You Much Leslie Exhibition, Virtually Versailles, Out of Thin Air: Hong Kong Film Arts & Costumes Exhibition, Timeless Diva: Anita Mui, Material Tales – The Life of Things, Science Fiction: Voyage to the Edge of Imagination and China Manned Space Exhibition. The total attendance of museums in 2023-24 was more than 7 million. As at March 2024, the LCSD museums have acquired about 1 654 000 items of collection in which about 321 000 items are historic, art and science objects and about 1 333 000 items are film and film-related materials.

Since 2015, the LCSD has been organising the Muse Fest HK annually. A variety of programmes would be rolled out in LCSD museums and art spaces to enable members of the public to delve into the amazing world of arts and culture. The Muse Fest HK 2023 launched in November 2023, with the theme of "Hong Kong H.A.S. (History.  Arts.  Science.) Museums", has successfully concluded, attracting more than 520 000 people to participate in more than 80 fabulous programmes.

Public Libraries: With its 71 static libraries and 12 mobile libraries, LCSD provides an accessible and efficient service to users in catering for community’s needs for knowledge, information, research, life-long learning, continuous education and profitable use of leisure time, and promotes reading and literary arts actively. It also manages the Books Registration Office which helps preserve Hong Kong’s literary heritage through the registration of local publications. The library system has a comprehensive collection of library materials which includes over 13.65 million items of books and 1.7 million items of multimedia publications. It had over 4.87 million registered borrowers, who borrowed more than 29.19 million items of books and other library materials during 2023-24. The Hong Kong Public Libraries continued to enrich library e-resources and to put efforts in promoting e-reading, and provided access to over 533 000 e-books for public use via the internet in 2023-24. An array of activities for people of all ages are organised in and outside of library venues across the territory and via the online platforms in promotion of culture, reading and knowledge dissemination. In 2023-24, about 22 000 extension activities programmes and more than 120 online programmes were held. Hong Kong Central Library is the largest purpose-built public library in Hong Kong. Apart from being the hub of the public library network as well as the major information centre of Hong Kong, it also organises a diversity of cultural programmes for the general public.