Cultural Development Advisory Committee Acting President-cum-Cultural Affairs Bureau (IC) President Deland Leong Wai Man said yesterday that a Hong Kong TV station will organise the trial concert at the newly-built open-air venue on December 28, adding that the gig will comprise singers and groups from Hong Kong, Macau, mainland China and other regions in Asia.
Leong did not identify the name of the TV station from Hong Kong.
Leong made the remarks during a press conference after this year’s fifth regular closed-door meeting of the government-appointed Cultural Development Advisory Committee at the Macau Cultural Centre in Nape, adding that the details of the first trial performance will be announced later.
The open-air venue, which has been built to host large-scale performances, located on a large plot next to the Lisboeta Macau integrated resort in Cotai, was completed last month.
The facility, which got off the ground in August, is officially known as Macau Open-Air Performance Venue, covering an area of 94,000-square-metres with a capacity of 50,000 spectators (about 7.0 percent of the population), but it could take in a maximum of 80,000 spectators if needed.
According to Leong, the venue is equipped with basic facilities suitable for large-scale events, including portable function spaces such as toilets, event team offices and lounges. At the same time, sufficient space will be reserved for the organiser to set up stages of different shapes, functions and effects, according to the scale and design of the respective performance, she said.
Leong noted that the budget of the concert is more than 20 million patacas, not counting the revenue from tickets, adding that there will be no real-name registration for the concert tickets, but as Macau residents are entitled to ticket concessions, the identity of the residents will be verified when they enter the concert with concessionary tickets.
The trial operation period of the outdoor performance area will last for one year, Leong said, which will be shortened or extended depending on the actual situation after the trials, during which the Cultural Affairs Bureau will be responsible for the trials in order to conduct different tests and collect opinions before formal operation.
Leong said that guidelines on the rules and regulations for the use of the venue, the activities to be organised and the charges for leasing the venue are still being worked out and will be announced in due course, adding that the bureau has already received enquiries from organisations interested in using the venue, but applications will not be accepted until the operational requirements and rules have been finalised and the venue is in full operation.
Cultural Development Advisory Committee Acting President-cum-Cultural Affairs Bureau (IC) President Deland Leong Wai Man speaks during a press conference after the committee’s regular closed-door meeting at the Macau Cultural Centre yesterday. – Photo: Ginnie Liang
