Arts hub in Hong Kong’s east Kowloon positioned to be city’s Broadway

A new arts and performing hub in Hong Kong’s east Kowloon, set to debut in November, is positioned as a leading venue for long-term theatrical runs similar to London’s West End and New York’s Broadway, a government official has said.

Director of Leisure and Cultural Services Manda Chan Wing-man said on Thursday that the East Kowloon Cultural Centre would be a hub for art, technology and long-running productions, and hoped that people would associate the area with such performances.

“London has West End … New York has Broadway,” Chan said. “Those places allow theatre troupes and high-quality shows to have long-term runs, meaning that whether you are a local audience member or a foreign tourist, as long as you want to see a high-quality show, you can go to those spots and enjoy it.

“We also want to have a similar key venue.”

The new East Kowloon facility, located at the former Ngau Tau Kok Lower Estate public housing site, is the latest large-scale performing arts venue to open in Hong Kong after the West Kowloon Cultural District.

The project was completed without exceeding its original budget of about HK$4.18 billion (US$536 million), first approved in July 2015.