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Stage 64 (Chinese: 六四舞台) is a Hong Kong theatre company established in 2009 to commemorate the 1989 Tiananmen Square protests and massacre.[1] The organization was founded by a group of volunteers from the Hong Kong Alliance in Support of Patriotic Democratic Movements of China (HKASPDMC). Its aim was to use drama to recreate the historical memory of the incident, to convey messages of democracy and human rights, and to encourage reflection on history.

Since 2009, Stage 64 had presented plays related to this theme around the anniversary of June 4th each year, performing in community theatres and secondary schools. In 2021, under the National Security Law, as key members of the HKASPDMC were successively arrested, Stage 64 officially disbanded. In 2024, on the 35th anniversary of June 4th, Stage 64 was re-formed in the United Kingdom.[2]

History

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Founding

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Stage 64 was founded by Wei Siu-lik, Lit Ming-wai, and Cheung Ka-wan, who were respectively a graphic designer, a physiotherapist, and a social worker. After participating in the 2003 July 1 march, they became long-term HKASPDMC volunteers. In 2008, after organizing the 19th June 4th Vigil at Victoria Park, they began considering ways to continue commemorative activities through art. They invited playwright Mandu (James Cheung), director Lee King-cheong, and Tiananmen eyewitness journalist Choi Shuk-fong to collaboratively create the play Edelweiss. In 2009, it was performed on the 20th anniversary of the June 4th Incident, which ultimately led to the establishment of Stage 64.[3]

Hong Kong period

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In March 2010, during rehearsals for a restaging of Edelweiss, a backstage staff member received a threatening phone call warning that continued involvement could harm their artistic career. Subsequently, all five backstage staff resigned, along with two actors. The news caused public uproar, and members of the theatre community quickly stepped in to fill the gaps. All 1,500 tickets for the five performances sold out within a day.[4]

From 2011, Stage 64 launched a secondary school touring program, with nearly 30 schools participating in its first year. In the following years, the program maintained around 40 performances annually, but by 2016, both the number of performances and ticket sales had dropped significantly, with only 28 schools willing to host the troupe. Members noted that some schools may have faced political pressure, while younger audiences were becoming increasingly detached from the June 4th topic.[5]

In 2020, due to the COVID-19 pandemic, scheduled performances were canceled. The troupe launched an online fundraising campaign to support production costs and shifted to livestream performances. On the eve of June 4th, the play May 35th (Gengzi version[a]) was streamed globally for free, attracting over 60,000 viewers and garnering more than 550,000 views within 90 hours. In the same year, the Hong Kong police banned HKASPDMC from holding its annual June 4th Vigil at Victoria Park. On June 30, the Hong Kong SAR government announced the official enactment of the National Security Law.[6]

Affected by the pandemic, the troupe's scheduled performances in January 2021 were canceled again. Instead, two online live reading sessions were held on June 1 and 3, featuring May 35th (Gengzi Version) and Edelweiss.[7]

In September 2021, members of HKASPDMC were arrested. Police formally charged chairman Lee Cheuk-yan, vice-chairman Ho Chun-yan, and Chow Hang-tung, along with other members, with "incitement of subversion."[8] As a result, Stage 64 disbanded voluntarily.[9]

After disbanding in Hong Kong

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In 2022 and 2023, Stage 64 authorized theatre troupes in Japan and Taiwan to perform May 35th in Japanese and Mandarin, respectively. From April 20 to 24, 2022, the Japanese version, translated by playwright Ishihara Nen, was staged seven times at the Tokyo Metropolitan Theatre. It was produced by the Japanese theatre company P-Company, directed by Matsumoto Yuko, and received the Odashima Yushi Award for Drama Translation.[10] From 2 to 4 June 2023, the Mandarin version of May 35th was performed five times in Taipei, organized by Amnesty International Taiwan and produced by Shinehouse Theatre, with a special additional reading in Cantonese.[11]

In 2024, on the 35th anniversary of June 4th, Stage 64 was re-formed in the United Kingdom. The troupe produced an English version of May 35th, marking its world premiere in London.[2]

Performances

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^ Only performed in school tours, the rest were all performed publicly[12]

Operation

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Stage 64 was a non-profit volunteer organization, with all members participating without pay. Its funding mainly came from fundraising efforts, the Hong Kong Alliance in Support of Patriotic Democratic Movements of China, and partial support from the Hong Kong Professional Teachers' Union, which was used to cover expenses for directors, actors, and venues.[13]

Three decades of commemorating June 4th

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During the height of the pro-democracy movement from May to June 1989, more than one million people in Hong Kong took to the streets in protest. From Xinhua News Agency and labor unions of Chinese-funded enterprises to pro-democracy groups, community organizations, and people from all walks of life — regardless of political stance — they all voiced their support for Beijing's democracy movement.[14][15] This wave of support for democracy is unprecedented in Hong Kong's history. There were no political stand of left or right, only right or wrong. Even actors of TVB Jade's show Enjoy Yourself Tonight would wear black armband before going on stage.[16] For the next thirty years, Hong Kong is the only place in China's soil where large-scale commemoration can be held.[17]

Compared with thirty years ago, when Hong Kong society could still freely discuss June 4th, the space for expression and creativity has gradually narrowed since 2019, and commemorative events have faced increasing restrictions.[1] In 2019, the 30th anniversary of June 4th marked the last candlelight vigil held at Victoria Park.[2] Following the enactment of the National Security Law, one civil group dissolved after another.

Directors Lee King-cheong, Angus Chan Man-bun, and actress Tam Tsz-ling among others, said that the theater troupe's persistence is not only about preserving historical memory, but also reflects the real circumstances Hong Kong people face under the same regime.[18][19] They believe that reflecting on June 4th is not only about China's history but also about Hong Kong's own story. The thirty years of June 4th vigils symbolize thirty years of freedom in Hong Kong.

Notes

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  1. ^ a year in the sexagenary cycle, which means "2020 version"
  2. ^ Chinese《在廣場上放一朵小白花》lit. 'Place a Little White Flower in the (Tiananmen) Square '
  3. ^ Chinese《讓黃雀飛》lit. 'Let the Yellow Bird Fly '
  4. ^ Chinese《黃雀飛——佔領中環版》lit. 'Let the Yellow Bird Fly (Occupy Central version) '
  5. ^ Chinese《王丹》
  6. ^ Chinese《那年我的孩子十七歲》lit. 'That year my child was seventeen '
  7. ^ Chinese《推土機前種花》lit. 'Planting Flowers Before the Bulldozers '
  8. ^ Chinese《傷城記》lit. 'Tales of a Wounded City ' with a pun on 傷(injury) and 雙(doubled or paired)
  9. ^ Chinese《沒有8903》lit. 'Without 8903 ' 89 refers to 1989, the year June Fourth Incident occurred; and 03 refers 2003, the year of SARS pandemic
  10. ^ Chinese《大海落霞》lit. 'The Sea and the Setting Glow ' The title refers to the Chinese given names of Liu Xiaobo and Liu Xia poetically.
  11. ^ Chinese《5月35日》

References

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Citations

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  1. ^ a b May, Tiffany (2023-06-04). "Hong Kong Remembered the Tiananmen Massacre, Until It Couldn't". New York Times.
  2. ^ a b c Man, Jasmine; Chen, Zifei (2024-05-30). "Tiananmen massacre play premieres in London for 35th anniversary". Radio Free Asia.
  3. ^ 陳倩兒〈風潮變了，「六四舞台」如何演下去？〉
  4. ^ 陳倩兒〈風潮變了，「六四舞台」如何演下去？〉
  5. ^ 陳倩兒〈風潮變了，「六四舞台」如何演下去？〉
  6. ^ 六四舞台《5月35日: 創作．記憶．抗爭》, p. 32
  7. ^ 六四舞台《5月35日: 創作．記憶．抗爭》, p. 32
  8. ^ "Hong Kong: Activists' human rights denied as trial postponed for a second time". Amnesty International. 2025-10-24. Retrieved 2025-10-25.
  9. ^ 六四舞台《5月35日: 創作．記憶．抗爭》, pp. 32–33
  10. ^ 六四舞台《5月35日: 創作．記憶．抗爭》, p. 33
  11. ^ 六四舞台《5月35日: 創作．記憶．抗爭》, p. 33
  12. ^ Stage 64 (2020-06-03). "May 35th (Gengzi Edition) House Programme" (PDF) (in Chinese (Hong Kong)). pp. 12–13.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
  13. ^ 陳倩兒〈風潮變了，「六四舞台」如何演下去？〉
  14. ^ 關震海; 王紀堯 (2019-05-31). "【「六四」三十年 中生代重組記憶碎片】口號解碼：誰創造了口號 誰就創造了視點" [[‘June 4th’ Thirty Years: The Middle Generation Reconstructs Fragments of Memory] Decoding the Slogans: Whoever Creates the Slogan Creates the Perspective.]. Ming Pao Weekly (in Chinese (Hong Kong)).
  15. ^ 林振東 (2016-06-03). "【六四影像】89年躁動的香港 黑白圖輯" [[June 4th Images] Hong Kong in Turmoil, 1989 — A Black-and-White Photo Album]. HK01.
  16. ^ 鄭美姿〈六四的三十年經緯軸〉載於《5月35日: 創作．記憶．抗爭》, p. 36 「但三十年前，TVB 明明連《歡樂今宵》都要改成悼念節目，藝員歌星無一不在襟上別上一方黑紗，才出現在電視機裡頭。那樣黑白分明、讓我們身心都得以活在陽光底下的年代，是永永遠遠地一去不復返了吧？」["But thirty years ago, TVB even turned Enjoy Yourself Tonight into a memorial program. Every actor and singer appeared on screen with a piece of black crepe pinned to their chest. That was a time when right and wrong were so clearly defined, when our bodies and minds could live openly under the sunlight. Perhaps that age has vanished forever, never to return?"]
  17. ^ "With Hong Kong's annual Tiananmen crackdown vigils snuffed out, cities around the world mark anniversary". Hong Kong Free Press. 2024-06-05.
  18. ^ 陳倩兒〈風潮變了，「六四舞台」如何演下去？〉 「我們只是在說一個有關自己的故事...我們是香港人，我們面對的政權亦都是當年六四鎮壓學生的政權，本質上是同一政權。我們回顧六四發生的事，對今天香港人自處，未來可以如何做，提供了線索和思考。...更實在地說，這個政權當年對學生做的，以後也可能在香港重現。我們只是在說一個有關自己的故事。」[“We are simply telling a story about ourselves... We are Hongkongers, and the regime we face today is the same one that suppressed the students during the June Fourth Incident — essentially, it is the same regime. Looking back at what happened during June 4th offers clues and reflections on how Hongkongers can situate ourselves today, and what we might do in the future... To put it more plainly, what that regime once did to the students could very well happen again in Hong Kong. We are simply telling a story about ourselves.”]
  19. ^ 羅永生〈他們的故事，也就是我們的故事〉載於《5月35日: 創作．記憶．抗爭》, p. 20 「過去十年，筆者一直認為，香港人除了參加每年的六四維園悼念集會之外，更應認真整理和反思關於六四的記憶，如何進入香港本土文化和政治脈絡的經驗。原因在於，六四不單只是中國的事，相反地，它已經在香港本土播種生根，構成了甚麼是香港，甚麼是香港人，塑造著當代香港文化，涵養著香港身份中關鍵的價值認同的重要力量。」[“Over the past decade, I have consistently believed that beyond taking part in the annual June Fourth candlelight vigil in Victoria Park, Hongkongers should also organize and reflect on the memory of June 4th — particularly on how it has entered into Hong Kong’s own cultural and political context. The reason is that June 4th is not merely a matter for China; on the contrary, it has already taken root and grown in Hong Kong. It has become part of what defines Hong Kong and Hongkongers, shaping contemporary Hong Kong culture and nurturing the core values that form an essential part of Hong Kong’s identity.”]

Sources

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