In an age where technology keeps accelerating—and where AI is rapidly entering the creative process—we're all being asked a bigger question: What is the role of performing arts today? How do we preserve the roots of tradition, while still creating new forms that speak to the world we live in now?
Today, we're delighted to be joined by a leading figure who has helped shape the performing arts landscape in Hong Kong and beyond—Professor Anna C.Y. Chan, Academy Director of the Hong Kong Academy for Performing Arts, and Dean of the School of Dance. With more than three decades dedicated to performance, leadership, and arts education, Professor Chan has played a pivotal role in talent development, cross-cultural collaboration, and institutional innovation—including her work in the West Kowloon Cultural District, where she helped drive a new chapter for dance in the city.
In this conversation, we'll explore the personal turning points behind her journey—the moment she realized, at just 14, that dance would define her life—and her belief that tradition is not a limitation, but a language: a foundation of structure, rhythm, values, and aesthetics that makes meaningful innovation possible. We'll also discuss her perspective on an AI-driven world: why she encourages young artists to embrace AI as a partner and a tool—while insisting that creativity must remain grounded in knowledge, discipline, and deep understanding of form.
And finally, we'll look ahead—at how Hong Kong's young people can turn passion into sustainable careers, and how institutions like HKAPA build pathways from training to the professional world, locally, regionally, and internationally.
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