Crowds swell as Hong Kong’s Sunbeam Theatre turns off lights after 52 years

Retiree Polly Cheung, 77, recalled that she used to watch Cantonese opera at the Sunbeam Theatre in North Point – one of Hong Kong’s most historic theatres – with her mother when she was young.

She also fell in love with the traditional Chinese art form as she grew older and would watch about three shows at the theatre every week after she retired.

But Cheung and many other fans will have to bid farewell to the theatre when it staged its final show on Monday evening after 53 years.

“I will miss it a lot. After the theatre is gone, I believe this location in North Point will become very quiet,” she said.

“The thing I will miss the most is that it can accommodate so many people and everyone will watch and cheer together … For those of us who enjoy Cantonese opera, we will lose a good place to go.”

The closure of the Sunbeam Theatre represents the end of an era for many fans of the art form in the city.