Chinese Culture Festival 2026 Launches in Hong Kong with Over 280 Performances and Activities

Chinese Culture Festival 2026 opens today

The Chinese Culture Festival (CCF) 2026, presented by the Culture, Sports and Tourism Bureau and organised by the Leisure and Cultural Services Department (LCSD), opened today (June 12) at the Hong Kong Cultural Centre (HKCC), launching over 280 performances and activities to be held from June to September.

In a video speech addressing the opening ceremony, the Chief Executive, Mr John Lee, said that the National 15th Five-Year Plan calls for advancing the promotion of building a strong cultural nation in a steady and substantive manner, with a view to better promoting Chinese culture to the world, and supporting Hong Kong in developing into an East-meets-West centre for international cultural exchange. The Government of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) has formulated the Blueprint for Arts and Culture and Creative Industries Development. It has also set up the Chinese Culture Promotion Office, dedicated to bringing culture into the community and enhancing the public's sense of national identity, belonging and pride. He said that the CCF, an annual flagship project, features performances, exhibitions, outreach activities and more. It makes fine use of Hong Kong's international network, allowing local citizens and overseas visitors alike to experience the historical spirit and contemporary flair of Chinese civilisation. He said the CCF promises to become a cultural bridge connecting Hong Kong with the Chinese Mainland, while reaching out to the world.

Officiating guests at the opening ceremony included the Secretary for Culture, Sports and Tourism, Miss Rosanna Law; the Deputy Director-General of the Department of Publicity, Cultural and Sports Affairs of the Liaison Office of the Central People's Government in the HKSAR, Mr Lin Nan; the Chairman of the Legislative Council Panel on Home Affairs, Culture and Sports, Mr Tang Ka-piu; member of the Working Group on Patriotic Education under the Constitution and Basic Law Promotion Steering Committee and Director of the Paso a Paso Foundation Limited, Ms Melissa Pang; and the Director of Leisure and Cultural Services, Ms Manda Chan.

The opening programme of this year's CCF - the dance drama "Lady White Snake" - was also staged this evening to a full house. Produced by the Shanghai Grand Theatre with internationally acclaimed ballet artist Tan YuanYuan as artistic director, the production assembles a distinguished creative team of top-tier artists from various disciplines and a stellar cast of lead dancers from both the Chinese Mainland and abroad. By weaving a dual tapestry of Eastern and Western choreographic languages, the work offers a modern reinterpretation of the millennial folk legend, charting a profound journey of self-discovery for Lady White Snake. The brilliant performances by the lead dancers of the "Moon" cast for the opening night - Ao Dingwen, Wu Husheng, Wang Nianci and Su Hailu, alongside dancers from the Shanghai Opera House Dance Ensemble - captivated the audience with a refreshing rendition of the "White Snake" legend.

In addition to stage performances, the CCF features a diverse array of activities designed to offer cultural experiences and artistic exchanges. The "Chinese Culture for All: A Special Performance Series" was held this afternoon at the Grand Theatre of the HKCC, where over 500 primary and secondary school students and teachers as well as members of the community were invited to attend the open rehearsal of "Lady White Snake" free of charge. The creative team and lead cast members participated in the pre-performance talk and post-performance meet-the-artist session to share their insights and creative concepts regarding this Hong Kong staging. Tan YuanYuan also conducted an open dance masterclass for dance students yesterday (June 11). A dance workshop will be conducted by Tan Yimei, principal dancer of the Shanghai Opera House Dance Ensemble, tomorrow (June 13), allowing participants to experience the charm of contemporary Chinese dance.

An exhibition of the Chinese Culture Festival 2026 is held from today until June 25 at the Foyer Exhibition Area of the HKCC, showcasing the Festival's distinctive stage programmes and activities. A photo-worthy spot featuring the Festival's special edition of LCSD mascots, with Enggie Pup and Artti Kitty dressed in huafu (Chinese traditional attire), is also set up outside the HKCC.

The CCF aims to promote Chinese culture and enhance the public's sense of national identity and cultural confidence, thereby facilitating patriotic education. It also aims to attract top-notch artists and arts groups from the Chinese Mainland and other parts of the world for exchanges in Chinese arts and culture. The CCF 2026 is held from June to September. It hosts various forms of distinctive stage programmes and related extension activities, film screenings, thematic exhibitions, talks, workshops, as well as community and school activities, affording the public and visitors more opportunities to appreciate and experience the beauty of fine traditional Chinese culture. For more information, please visit www.ccf.gov.hk.

A photo-worthy spot featuring the Chinese Culture Festival 2026's special edition of Leisure and Cultural Services Department mascots, Enggie Pup and Artti Kitty dressed in huafu (Chinese traditional attire), is set up outside the Hong Kong Cultural Centre starting from today (June 12). Source: HKSAR Government Press Releases

An exhibition of the Chinese Culture Festival 2026 is held from today (June 12) until June 25 at the Foyer Exhibition Area of the Hong Kong Cultural Centre, showcasing the Festival's distinctive stage programmes and activities running from June to September. Source: HKSAR Government Press Releases

An exhibition of the Chinese Culture Festival 2026 is held from today (June 12) until June 25 at the Foyer Exhibition Area of the Hong Kong Cultural Centre, showcasing the Festival's distinctive stage programmes and activities running from June to September. Source: HKSAR Government Press Releases

Internationally acclaimed ballet artist Tan YuanYuan, alongside creative team members, attended a pre-performance talk for the dance drama "Lady White Snake" on June 10. Photo shows a scene of the talk. Source: HKSAR Government Press Releases

The Chinese Culture Festival 2026 staged the dance drama "Lady White Snake" by the Shanghai Grand Theatre as the opening programme. Photo shows a scene from "Lady White Snake". Source: HKSAR Government Press Releases

The Chinese Culture Festival 2026 staged the dance drama "Lady White Snake" by the Shanghai Grand Theatre as the opening programme. Photo shows a scene from "Lady White Snake". Source: HKSAR Government Press Releases

The Chinese Culture Festival 2026, presented by the Culture, Sports and Tourism Bureau and organised by the Leisure and Cultural Services Department, opened today (June 12) at the Hong Kong Cultural Centre. Photo shows the officiating guests including the Secretary for Culture, Sports and Tourism, Miss Rosanna Law (centre); the Deputy Director-General of the Department of Publicity, Cultural and Sports Affairs of the Liaison Office of the Central People's Government in the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, Mr Lin Nan (second left); the Chairman of the Legislative Council Panel on Home Affairs, Culture and Sports, Mr Tang Ka-piu (second right); member of the Working Group on Patriotic Education under the Constitution and Basic Law Promotion Steering Committee and Director of the Paso a Paso Foundation Limited, Ms Melissa Pang (first left); and the Director of Leisure and Cultural Services, Ms Manda Chan (first right). Source: HKSAR Government Press Releases

Land and Development Advisory Committee holds meeting

The Development Bureau briefed the Land and the Development Advisory Committee (LDAC) at its meeting today (July 27) on the two new measures to incentivise urban renewal. The major arrangements of the measures are as follows:

(1) The Bonus Plot Ratio Pilot Scheme: If a developer commits to pull down a building with residential elements in the seven designated areas (Note), whose building age reached 50 years or above with the site area not less than 700 square metres, and redevelop it into residential use, an additional 20 per cent premium-free gross floor area (GFA) will be provided as bonus. The developer can choose to submit planning application to the Town Planning Board (TPB) to directly utilise the bonus plot ratio in kind for in-situ redevelopment. The developer can also choose to translate the bonus plot ratio into land premium value for offsetting the land premium payable for in-situ redevelopment or any other land transactions in the Northern Metropolisand other parts of the territory. To simplify the execution procedures, the Government will use standard rates to calculate the premium value of the bonus plot ratio. All in-situ redevelopment projects joining the Pilot Scheme are required to be effected by means of lease modification to ensure timely completion of the redevelopment project. The bonus plot ratio will not affect other existing GFA concession measures. Subject to market response, the Development Bureau will evaluate the effectiveness of the Pilot Scheme, as well as introduce adjustments where necessary and consider whether the period of the Pilot Scheme will have to be extended; and

(2) The cross-district transfer of plot ratio (TPR) arrangement: It is to relax the current arrangements of TPR within the same district, allowing cross-district transfer of plot ratio from the sending sites to other areas across the territory, including the New Development Areas, so as to reduce the development density in the urban area. It is also to extend the geographic coverage of sending sites from Mong Kok and Yau Ma Tei to the remaining five designated areas (Note), as well as removing the limit of two receiving sites and reducing the site area requirement of receiving sites from 1000sqm to 700sqm. To provide additional incentives, if the sending site is used for designated uses benefiting the local community, subject to the TPB's approval, certain premium-free GFA could be provided within the sending sites as bonus GFA, in addition to the full transfer of the plot ratio and GFA from sending sites in order to support the on-going management and maintenance of the sending site. Furthermore, the premium assessment arrangement will be relaxed to allow the land premium assessment for the sending sites and receiving sites to be combined. All cross-district TPR proposals will require submission of planning applications to the TPB, which will perform a gatekeeping role in ensuring the transfer will not cause adverse impact to the surrounding environment.

The Secretary for Development, Ms Bernadette Linn, said "At present, the pace of building ageing in Hong Kong far exceeds that of redevelopment by the Urban Renewal Authority (URA) and the private market. In the past decade, the number of buildings aged 50 years or above increased by about 510 per year, while on average only 160 buildings were demolished by the URA and the private sector. And not many redevelopment projects in old districts are financially viable these days. In this regard, the Government has to adopt a new mindset and bold policy thinking to give a stronger policy push to encourage the private sector to participate in urban renewal, with a view to expediting redevelopment and rescuing urban decay."

Members were very supportive of the two new measures proposed by the Government. They agreed that the Bonus Plot Ratio Pilot Scheme would provide incentives and enhance the financial viability of redevelopment projects in old districts, and that the cross-district TPR arrangement could further incentivise the market to use the planning tool to expedite urban renewal.

Members considered that it was time to give bolder and stronger push to promote urban redevelopment by the URA and the market. If the response of these measures is positive, members expected that the Government could extend the Pilot scheme and consider relaxing the implementation arrangements where appropriate. Given the measures would involve a lot of technical implementation details, Members would like the Government to set out such details in the application guidelines of the relevant measures, so as to facilitate implementation.

The above are two of the measures announced in the Chief Executive's 2025 Policy Address to expedite urban renewal. Having consulted relevant stakeholders and taken into account their comments, the Government has formulated the implementation arrangements. The LDAC today mainly discussed the implementation details of the relevant proposals.

The Government will issue a joint practice notes for launching the Bonus Plot Ratio Pilot Scheme and revise the TPB Guidelines on TPR after obtaining the TPB's endorsement, with a view to launching the two schemes in the third quarter of 2026.

Note: The seven designated areas refer to Cheung Sha Wan (the same Outline Zoning Plan (OZP) covering also Sham Shui Po), Ma Tau Kok (covering Kowloon City and To Kwa Wan), Mong Kok, Sai Ying Pun and Sheung Wan (covered by the same OZP), Tsuen Wan, Wan Chai and Yau Ma Tei.

Source: AI-found images