回忆之旅

小瓊：有时，最有趣的发现会出现在最意想不到的地方。最近我回到香港参加第47 届香港国际电影节，非常高兴能与中国表演艺术历史中的一些片段面对面。它还证明了，无论是过去还是现在，文化作为一座桥梁的重要性，它都能建立人们之间的理解。

小薇：所以，这一切都是从一部新的纪录片《尚未完场》开始的？这部纪录片关注了香港岛上一家面临拆迁困境的剧院建筑。我听说文物保护者们最终在2020 年取得胜利，为它延续了历史！

小琼：上海也有着许多美丽的历史建筑—— 想想外滩，或者法租界里保存完好的一排排房子。在20 世纪70 年代和80 年代，香港的许多旧建筑被摩天大楼取代，这种趋势至今仍在延续。

小薇：香港是在近50 年里才发展成为国际大都市。由于第二次世界大战后的人口激增，20 世纪50 年代时大量上海移民迁入香港。香港北角甚至被称为“小上海”。

小琼：《尚未完场》是一部由祁凯达和徐岱灵拍摄的纪录片，讲述了位于北角英皇道的璇宫戏院，该剧院由英国经理欧德礼于1952 年建成。欧德礼是一位超级音乐爱好者，他和他的家人在香港生活了几十年。这家剧院白天放映电影，晚上进行音乐演出。曾出现在舞台上的著名音乐家， 包括小提琴家艾萨克·斯特恩和钢琴家路易斯·肯特纳和所罗门等。另外，我还有一个重大发现， 一个由中国表演艺术家组成的剧团曾在1956 年6 月底到7 月初在璇宫戏院演出过。除了舞蹈演员、京剧艺术家，还有中国著名的花腔女高音歌唱家周小燕！据记载，她演唱了《康定情歌》《四季歌》等脍炙人口的艺术歌曲。

小薇：我在报纸上看到报道说，每场演出的门票都被抢购一空。街区周围排起了购票的长龙。

小琼：甚至香港的第一家商业电台——丽的呼声电台也转播了那次演出，留下了周小燕先生巅峰时期美妙嗓音的珍贵历史录音。

小薇：我在网上看到报道说璇宫戏院真的不赚钱。后来，欧德礼将这座建筑卖给了另一家公司。1959 年，该剧院以皇都戏院的名称开始重新运营。

Joan： Sometimes the most interesting discoveries pop up in the most unexpected places. I was back in Hong Kong to attend the 47th Hong Kong International Film Festival and was so delighted to come face to face with a snippet of Chinese performing arts history. It also proved the importance of culture as a bridge to build people-to-people understanding， both then and now.

Valery： So it all started with a new documentary film， To Be Continued ， about a theater in danger of demolition on Hong Kong island？ I hear preservationists eventually won the case in 2020！

Joan： Shanghai is also filled with beautiful historic buildings： just think of the Bund， or the rows of houses in the French Concession that are so well-preserved. During the 1970s and 1980s， many old buildings in Hong Kong were replaced by skyscrapers， and that trend continues today.

Valery： Hong Kong didnt develop as a metropolis until the past 50 years， with a population boom after the Second World War and a significant population of Shanghai emigrés moved into the area by the 1950s. North Point became known as Little Shanghai.

Joan： To Be Continued is a documentary by Haider Kikabhoy and Dora Chiu about the Empire Theatre on Kings Road in North Point， built in 1952 by the British impresario Harry Odell. Odell and his family had lived in Hong Kong for decades and he was a great music lover. This theater would show films during the day and present musical performances in the evening. Famous musicians who appeared on that stage included violinist Isaac Stern and pianists Louis Kentner and Solomon. The big discovery was that in 1956， a troupe of Chinese performing artists performed at the Empire Theatre in late June and early July. Apart from dancers， Peking opera， there was also Madame Zhou Xiaoyan performing art songs！ According to the records， she sang such popular favorites as Kangding Love Song and Four Seasons Song .

Valery： I read in newspaper reports that every performance was sold out. There were lines around the block to buy tickets.

Joan： Even Hong Kongs Radio Redifussion （first commercial radio of Hong Kong） broadcast the performance， which left historic recordings of Madame Zhous amazing voice at her prime.

Valery： I read in reports online that the Empire Theatre really didnt make money. Odell sold the building to another company and by 1959， the site operated under the new name of the State Theatre.