The 37th Graduation Ceremony of The Hong Kong Academy for Performing Arts (the Academy) was held at the Academy Lyric Theatre this afternoon. The ceremony was officiated by Council Chairman Mr. Edward Cheng Wai-sun, GBS JP.
Professor Gillian Choa, Director of the Academy, extended her hearty congratulations to the Graduation Class of 2023 at the ceremony. “As always, the Academy is able to leverage the historical edge of Hong Kong where Eastern and Western cultures meet, to provide students with a diverse, cross-disciplinary learning environment and boost the cultivation of a new generation of young performing arts talents who are able to grow their own voice and style, and push boundaries. I am also very proud of our many alumni who received top local and international awards this past year in all disciplines. I would like to share with you two inspiring quotes. The first one is from the legendary dancer and choreographer, Martha Graham, whom I was fortunate enough to meet as a young teenager and who have inspired me ever since. She remarked, ‘You are unique, and if that is not fulfilled, then something has been lost...No artist is ahead of his time. He is his time, it is just that others are behind times...Some men have thousands of reasons why they cannot do what they want to, when all they need is one reason why they can.’ So plough forward, as you continue to grow and develop as artists and performers, remember the significance of your passion, dedication, and commitment to your work, and your unique creative voice as artists. I would also like to remind you, as Martin Luther King remarked: ‘Not everybody can be famous, but everybody can be great, because greatness is determined by service.’ We, as educators, have served you in the past few years, this is your time to serve your chosen field and those less fortunate than you in the larger community.”
This year, a total of 335 graduates from the six Schools of the Academy; namely, Chinese Opera, Dance, Drama, Film and Television, Music, and Theatre and Entertainment Arts were conferred Master’s Degrees, Bachelor’s (Honours) Degrees, Advanced Diplomas, Diploma Foundations, or Certificates.
The Hong Kong Academy for Performing Arts (www.hkapa.edu)
The Hong Kong Academy for Performing Arts (HKAPA), established by The Hong Kong Academy for Performing Arts Ordinance in 1984, is a leading tertiary institution in the performing arts in Asia. It provides professional undergraduate education and practice-based postgraduate studies. The study encompasses Chinese Opera, Dance, Drama, Film and Television, Music, and Theatre and Entertainment Arts. Its educational philosophy reflects the cultural diversity of Hong Kong with emphasis on Chinese and Western traditions, and interdisciplinary learning.
Since 2008, the Academy has attained the Programme Area Accreditation (PAA) status awarded by the Hong Kong Council for Accreditation of Academic and Vocational Qualifications (HKCAAVQ) to self-monitor and accredit its own undergraduate and post-secondary programmes in the five programme areas of Dance, Drama, Film and Television, Music, and Theatre and Entertainment Arts. Since 2016, the PAA status has been extended to cover Master’s Degree programmes and below; and since 2023, the programmes operated by the School of Chinese Opera accredited by HKCAAVQ has also received PAA status for its post-secondary and undergraduate programmes.
Besides the main campus in Wanchai, Béthanie, the site of the Academy’s Landmark Heritage Campus in Pokfulam, has housed training facilities for the School of Film and Television since 2006.
In the QS University Rankings announced in 2023, the Academy ranks 1st in Asia and 13th in the world in the Performing Arts category.