International Arts Carnival 2025: A Summer of Global Performances and Family Fun Begins July 11

2025-05-15 12:00 Last Updated At：16:25

Summer arts festival International Arts Carnival tickets on sale from May 16

The International Arts Carnival (IAC) will run from July to August this year, featuring a wide array of fun-filled educational programmes by overseas, Mainland and local art groups for all age groups to add to a joyful summer. Tickets will be on sale from tomorrow (May 16). The carnival is a highly popular arts festival organised by the Leisure and Cultural Services Department (LCSD) every summer.

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Summer arts festival International Arts Carnival tickets on sale from May 16 Source: HKSAR Government Press Releases

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Summer arts festival International Arts Carnival tickets on sale from May 16 Source: HKSAR Government Press Releases

This year, participating overseas artists will come from the Netherlands, Korea, Norway and the United States. Together with their Mainland and local counterparts, they are set to present a wide variety of performing arts programmes covering martial arts, acrobatics, dance, music, theatre, multimedia and more.

The opening programme will be the martial arts theatre performance "Soul of Shaolin" featuring elite performers of the Henan Provincial Shaolin Wushu Center from July 11 to 13. The performance will showcase breathtaking martial arts scenes such as boxing, weaponry and qigong to demonstrate the harmony between the spiritual wisdom and physical strength of Chinese kung fu. "Soul of Shaolin" is finally coming to Hong Kong after its Broadway debut in 2009, which earned both Tony and Drama Desk Award nominations. After more than two decades of world touring, it is not to be missed.

Celebrated violinist Ray Chen will join Italian conductor Gianandrea Noseda and members of the National Youth Orchestra of the United States of America to perform on July 28. During the concert, Chen will perform Mendelssohn’s ever-popular "Violin Concerto in E minor, Op. 64" with the orchestra. The repertoire will also include Rachmaninov's masterful "Symphony No. 2 in E minor, Op. 27" and a new work by contemporary music composer Carlos Simon. This performance will also be part of the orchestra's Asian tour.

To celebrate the upcoming 15th National Games, the IAC will present "Sounds of Sports" August 2 and 3. Led by pianist Phoebus Chan, the performance will blend music and sports as local musicians and athletes will combine karate, rugby, wushu and table tennis with jazz drums, shakuhachi, erhu, cello and piano, turning the concert hall into an exciting sports ground full of energy.

The award-winning Xi'an Acrobatic Troupe will perform a new adaptation of the acrobatic ballet "Swan Lake" August 8 to 10, fusing incredible acrobatics with ballet, turning this famous dance performance into a powerful yet graceful show. The show features over 20 dazzling acrobatic acts including contortionists bending and twisting, doing flips and balancing, aerial hoops and dancing on shoulders. "Swan Lake" and "Soul of Shaolin" are also programmes that are part of this year’s Chinese Culture Festival.

Other IAC stage programmes include:

* "OvO" from Norway, a dance programme for infants aged nine to 24 months and their parents by dybwikdans;

* "Waiting!" from Korea, an exciting and hilarious multimedia theatre by HADDANGSE;

* "Home" from the Netherlands, an interactive multimedia theatre by Mime Wave;

* "The Secret Agent Spin-off: The Hidden Treasure", a musical adapted from the bestselling novel "The Secret Agent" by Musical Trio;

* "A Musical Treasure Hunt - Percussion Kaleidoscope" and "A Showcase of Parent-child works of Cheng Kwok Kong" by the Hong Kong Chinese Orchestra;

* "Live Animation Cinesthetics" and "The Other Side of Schumann" by the Hong Kong Sinfonietta;

* "Little Pigs・Little Duck・Little Riding Hood 2.0" by Pop Theatre;

* "My Arena: Dance of Triumph" by the City Contemporary Dance Company;

* "The Kids in Rainbow Jerseys 2.0" by the Hong Kong Dance Company;

* "‘It’s Time to Dance’ Inclusive Dance Theatre by Dancing Andy and Dancers "; and

* 2025 Hong Kong Youth Music Camp Concerts "Summer Echoes" by the Music Office.

In addition to stage performances, there will also be a fine selection of films from around the world under the Summer Family Cine Fest by the Film Programmes Office. The IAC also offers a wide range of parent-child workshops, an online programme, an outreach performance and an exhibition. Venue partners and LCSD libraries will also hold plenty of related activities and programmes during the festival period.

Tickets for the IAC will be available at URBTIX (www.urbtix.hk) from May 16 onwards. For telephone bookings, please call 3166 1288 or use the mobile ticketing app "URBTIX".

For enquiries on programmes and ticketing, please call 2370 1044 or visit its website at www.hkiac.gov.hk.

Hong Kong Customs Seizes $3.4 Million in Drugs, Two Arrested at Airport and Yau Ma Tei.

Hong Kong Customs detects two dangerous drugs cases and seizes suspected drugs worth about $3.4 million

Hong Kong Customs detected two dangerous drugs cases in Hong Kong International Airport and Yau Ma Tei respectively on April 1 and yesterday (April 2), and seized a total of about 3.1 kilograms of suspected ketamine, about 1.7 kilograms of suspected cocaine and about 1.7 kilograms of suspected methamphetamine with a total estimated market value of about $3.4 million. Two persons suspected to be connected with the cases were arrested.

In the first case, a 43-year-old male passenger arrived in Hong Kong from Bangkok, Thailand on April 1. During customs clearance, Customs officers found about 3.1 kilograms of suspected ketamine concealed inside food packaging in his baggage. The man was subsequently arrested.

In the second case, during an anti-narcotics operation conducted in Yau Ma Tei on April 2, Customs officers intercepted a 41-year-old man and later escorted him to a hotel room nearby for a search and seized about 1.7 kilograms of suspected cocaine, about 1.7 kilograms of suspected methamphetamine, a drug inhaling apparatus and a batch of drug packaging paraphernalia. The man was subsequently arrested.

The arrested persons have been charged with one count of trafficking in a dangerous drug respectively and will appear at the Kwun Tong Magistrates' Courts tomorrow (April 4).

Customs will continue to step up enforcement against drug trafficking activities through intelligence analysis. The department also reminds members of the public to stay alert and not to participate in drug trafficking activities for monetary return. They must not accept hiring or delegation from another party to carry controlled items into and out of Hong Kong. They are also reminded not to carry unknown items for other people, nor to release their personal data or home address to others for receiving parcels or goods.

Customs will continue to apply a risk assessment approach and focus on selecting passengers from high-risk regions for clearance to combat transnational drug trafficking activities.

Under the Dangerous Drugs Ordinance, trafficking in a dangerous drug is a serious offence. The maximum penalty upon conviction is a fine of $5 million and life imprisonment.

Members of the public may report any suspected drug trafficking activities to Customs' 24-hour hotline 182 8080 or its dedicated crime-reporting email account (crimereport@customs.gov.hk) or online form (eform.cefs.gov.hk/form/ced002).

International Arts Carnival 2025: A Summer of Global Performances and Family Fun Begins July 11

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