徐渭芝博士明報月刊文章：跨境媽媽

        一談到「雙非子女」、「跨境媽媽」 ，香港人首先會想到「 衝關」急症室、分薄香港資灘和福利等。二零一三年底，終審法院裁定在香港居留不足七年的香港永久居民不能申請综援是違反《基本法》時，內地與香港的矛盾更趨激烈。
        本系徐渭芝博士基於其田野調查中的發現，於《明報月刊》專題下發表了文章“跨境媽媽”，試圖從跨境學童母親的角度來看中港矛盾議題，以及幫助讀者了解她們真實的在港生活。本文寫於終審法院判決前，有關部分跨境媽媽的心聲， 值得一讀。也許發出反對聲音的同時，也應該了解一下他們，從中或許找到辦法，既幫助他們，也帮助自己。

        “我們經常聽到中港跨境學童的報道， 其實香港還有一群跨境媽媽。
        內地孕婦在港產子後一般會帶回內地撫養，但過了幾年，家長便要考慮孩子入學問題， 模式大概有三個，一是在父母原居地生活及上學， 二是在深圳生活，孩子每天跨境上學，三是在香港生活及上學。本文所述的跨境媽媽， 正是第三種模式，媽媽跨境留港照顧在學小孩，而且都是基層出身。這種安排對基層家庭可說是極大考驗，為什麼她們要這樣選擇？她們最初又為什麼在香港生孩子？香港社會論述偏向視她們濫用福利和爭奪學位，本文試從她們的角度去看，以及了解她們在港的生活。”…… 點擊下圖閱讀全文。

[Event] Understanding Kodo and Kyogen from two Japanese Masters

On May 7 and 8, a Japanese Kodo (香道) and Kyogen (狂言) Demonstration was co-organised by The Department of Anthropology and the Institute of Future Cities' (IOFC) Centre of Urban History, Culture and Media.

Mr. Hachiya Souhitsu, a designated Iemoto of Shinoryu Kodo, and Mr. Nomura Matasaburo, a Nohgaku actor and Izumi style Kyogen master, were invited to share with participants the traditional Japanese art of Kodo and Kyogen.

Mr. Hachiya, designated Iemoto of Shinoryu Kodo, shared with us the history of Japanese Kodo and the challenges faced by traditional arts in a modern world.

Incense appreciation.

Mr. Nomura is an Izumi style Kyogen master of Japan. Since 2011, he has become the 14th Kyogen master to successively bear the name of Nomura Matasaburo. He performed at the Royal wedding ceremony of the Crown Prince and Princess of Japan, and has also participated in the Hollywood movie The Last Samurai and an NHK drama broadcasted in 2013.

A Kyogen demonstration by Mr. Nomura and his son. Traditional arts are passed down from generation to generation. And Mr. Nomura's son may inherit the role as Kyogen master in the future.

Mr. Nomura sharing his Kyogen costume collection with us.

As we listened to Mr. Hachiya and Mr. Nomura's stories, we were overwhelmed by their persistence to preserve and promote traditional arts, and start rethinking the preservation of traditional craftsmanship and arts in our local history and culture, as well as the costs of economic development. 

What is the value of history, heritage and traditions in the modern society? Why are they important, especially when we are planning for the future? Maybe these are the questions left for the participants and us.

Walking through Sheung Wan Series(1): The Alchemy of Winter Worm & Summer Grass

What is "winter worm & summer grass"? How could anything in the world be a "worm in winter and grass in summer"? Well, first of all, it is actually a parasitic fungus inside a caterpillar. But then what has caused its bloom in the market? Is it purely due to its "medical values"? What roles did political economy and culture played in this process? How did the fungi rose from a total disfavor to such a golden value in just a few decades? What role did Hong Kong played in this metamorphosis? And how has the "All-Tibetan Gold Rush" for fungi in recent years affect the local ecology and society in Tibet?

In her article "The Alchemy of Winter Worm & Summer Grass", our former MPhil student Zelda Liang discussed the above issues based on her research. Click the picture below to see the full article in Hong Kong Discovery (Vol 72), Walking through Sheung Wan Series.

Prof CHENG Sea Ling will perform in Scribbler 2014 Performance『春寒|另一種死亡』

Professor CHENG Sea Ling is going to perform in the Scribbler 2014 Performance 『另一種死亡』 at HK Cultural Centre tomorrow. There will be a 50% off for students for the May 17, 3 pm show. Those who are interested please contact bycchiu@gmail.com by email on or before May 15.

六四事件二十五年後的反思 ─ 舞台上再現自由、人權被剝削的苦痛

亂描舍自1989年成立，至今已經25年。今年，亦是六四天安門事件發生之後的 第25個年頭。 25年過去，國內人權狀況沒有得到改善，打壓異見聲 音、剝奪人權自由的事件仍經常發生。因此，亂描舍決定在社會各界熱烈討論政改、 大眾高度關注人權自 由的時刻，演出全新創作劇《另一種死亡》及重演獲獎作品 《春寒》，讓異見人士被囚、被軟禁的苦痛呈現於舞台，期望大家對自由、人權有更 深一層的反思。
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《春寒》 – 於1997年創作的得獎作品，取名自王希哲的同名散文集

某年春天 某些失去了自由的人 想起了某些往事

本劇創作於1997年初，正值香港回歸前夕。當時多名中國異見人士紛紛被判刑， 引起國際間的關注。對於這群因意識形態不同而身陷囹圄的人，他們的犧牲以及 所要忍受的苦痛，是我們難以身同感受的。這次創作參考自王希哲、魏京生、王丹及 蘇江等人的著作，將 五個囚犯在獄中的幾段故事編成一劇，以不同的角度去探討 他們內心的掙扎。

（本劇曾獲市政局戲劇匯演優異整體演出、優異導演及優異舞台視覺效果等獎項）
編劇 / 原作導演：馮家良
執行導演：余德銘
形體指導：黃啟堯
演員： 趙汝俊 / 馮瑞興 / 尹兆信 / 黃啟堯 / 司徒侃然 / 葉家禮 / 陳琪穎 / 鄭煥美
舞台設計：何美儀
燈光設計：馮家良
道具設計：陳緻雅
音響 / 音樂編排：司徒侃然
服裝設計：王少萍
舞台監督：廖得安 陳詠茜
執行舞台監督：鄭詩玲


《另一種死亡》 - 全新創作，取名自劉霞同名詩集

「她坐在這裡，看天色由明到暗，傾聽最後一縷陽光發出的呻吟。」
在一間沒有退路的房間 一個女人唸著關於另一個女人的故事 兩個男人在竊聽著……
安蒂崗妮 困在一片漆黑之中 靜候著另一種死亡

此劇創作於2014年。自從劉曉波獲得2010年度諾貝爾和平獎之後，他 的妻子劉霞便一直被軟 禁，從此失去自由，並與外界近乎隔絕。本劇根據她的遭 遇對比希臘悲劇《安蒂崗妮 》（Antigone）中女主角的悲慘命運作為靈感， 以嶄新的表現手法，大膽的想像及假設，帶出這個時代的荒謬，激發出一個個值得我 們深思的問題。

編劇 / 導演：馮家良
助理導演：袁啟亮
形體指導：黃啟堯
演員： 鄭詩靈 / 鄭煥美 / 洪蔓玲 / 吳學文 / 祈峯
舞台設計：何美儀
燈光設計：岑沅樺
道具設計：陳緻雅
音響 / 音樂編排：麥耀華 何銘欣
服裝設計：余志華
舞台監督：廖得安 陳詠茜
執行舞台監督：鄭詩玲

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亂描舍廿五週年演出： 春寒｜另一種死亡

演出地點： 香港文化中心劇場

演出日期： 2014年5月16日（五）晚上八時; 5月17日（六）下午三時及晚上八時

票價：$180（不設劃位）

網上購票：www.urbtix.hk | 信用卡電話購票：21115999 | 票務查詢：37616661
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關於亂描舍

亂描舍成立廿五週年，曾演出超過二十齣作品。當中包括《推銷員之死》、《情 信》、《春寒》、《刺 客傳》、《小城之春 》、《5號房間》、《玩偶之家》及《夢雨》等，並在主要的公開戲劇比賽中獲得不 少獎項，包括最佳/優異整體演出、最佳/優異導演、最佳/優異視覺效果及優 異演員等。

我們期望以當代視野及創新手法演譯原創及改編劇目，致力透過戲劇探索生命，以富 有詩意的場面，把 生活和人性的不同層面投射於舞台上，與觀眾一起分享對生命的 種種體會。
我們的作品揉合多種藝術表演形式，包括音樂、舞蹈及默劇等，希望為觀眾帶來耳目 一新的劇場體驗。 踏入廿五週年，我們回望過去，亦繼續邁步向前。

欲了解更多亂描舍之一點一滴，請瀏覽網頁 http://www.scribblers.org.hk。

Job Hunting Workshop for Anthropology Graduates

On March 24, 2014, a Job Hunting Workshop for Anthropology Graduates was held by the Postgraduate Students' Society of Anthropology Department(PSSAD). Four previous CUHK anthropology postgraduate students-- ZHONG Wen, Jo YUNG, Amy HO and Astrid CHANG came and shared their working experience with participants. After a short speech of each speaker, the workshop were divided freely into four groups so the speakers could talk freely with participants and answer their questions on career lives of anthropology majors. Around 30 MA and MPhil students joined the workshop and enjoyed this great opportunity to find out more about their future.

Short introduction of each speaker:

ZHONG Wen graduated from the Department as an MA student in 2013 and is now working as a journalist.

Jo YUNG is our former MA student who graduated in 2004 and is now working as a marketing researcher. Jo has more than ten years of research experience and has participated in various research projects both in academia and business. Jo is currently Head of Ethnography Center of Excellence, APAC at Ipsos.

Amy HO graduates as an MA from the Department and is now a computer game expert who is currently working in a game development company.

Astrid CHANG was originally from Beijing. She graduated as an MPhil student from the Department in 2011 and has also received her BSSc in Journalism in CUHK. She has had several jobs and is now working as an International News Editor.

[Indian Culture Workshop 2013-2014] Session 4: Durga Puja, at YMT Henry Leong Community Centre

Session #4 Durga Puja, at YMT Henry Leong Community Centre

Speaker: Mr. Sanjib Sengupta, The Hong Kong Bengali Association

Have you ever wondered how the Hindus celebrate their festivals? Why their gods and goddesses look so fierce, and have different gestures, facial expressions? Why are they painted in varies colors? For session four, the Indian Culture Workshop participants, together with Dr. Tam joined the Durga Puja celebration with the help of the Hong Kong Bengali Association.

Durga Puja is the festival of the Goddess Durga. The worship of Goddess Durga is very popular among Hindus. Other than the name Durga, she is also named differently in her various avatars, or forms. She is known as the divine spouse of Lord Shiva and the mother of two sons—Ganesha and Karttikeya, as well as the daughter Jyoti.

Goddess Durga is shown in a female form, wearing red clothes. The red color symbolizes action and red clothes signify that She is always busy fighting evil and protecting mankind from the pain and suffering caused by evil forces. Thus, She represents the power of the Supreme Being preserving moral order and righteousness in the creation. Durga, who is also called the Divine Mother, protects mankind from evil forces such as selfishness, jealousy, prejudice, hatred, anger, and ego.

The Hong Kong Bengali Association organized the Durga Puja at YauMaTei Henry Leong Community Centre. Like in India, the devotees built their own altar and the Durga statue. The Hong Kong Bengali Association even invited a brahma (the high priest) from India to host and chant for the festival. Due to the limitation and regulation in Hong Kong, the statue may not be as humongous as those in India, but they still try to preserve every bit of their worship and celebration rituals.

The celebration of Durga Puja in Hong Kong usually lasts for two days. Religious and worship rituals with the priest are on the first half of each day. After the free lunch sections, children would stay and practice for their own talent show in the evening. And for the second half of the last day, priest will chant and devotees would celebrate with “color throwing.” Yet unlike in India that the statue of Puja would be smashed and submerged into the sea, the statue in Hong Kong would be cleaned up, stored, and re-used in the next year’s Puja.  

Religion, food, and festival provide a sense of comfort for the overseas Indians and bonding opportunities at both religious and social levels. After the rituals, followers would be served lunch catered by the female devotees, or local food catering in our case. Males serve the food while females and children gather and enjoy the food. The free food serving here serves as a communal bonding purpose for the Indian community in Hong Kong.  Likewise, the celebration of the festival provides the community a place for the Indians to reconnect with their own society, religion, and community. 

Mr. Sanjib Sengupta (standing) explaining the history behind the Durga Puja—the annual festival worshipping the Hindu goddess Durga.

Anthropologists on the Road Series(3): Tea House Cantonese Opera-- A Vanishing Life-style in Guangzhou

The chàhjoh culture refers to the setting in tea houses with Cantonese opera performances. Since Cantonese opera was inscribed in the UNESCO intangible cultural heritage list in 2010, the Guangzhou government has adopted the cultural policy to develop Cantonese opera intensively. And therefore many youngsters has entered the music industry learning Cantonese opera. However, with its music performance being nationalized and started taking place in new forms, traditional chàhjoh culture has started to vanish. The aging audience in chàhjoh proved that the declaration of Cantonese opera as intangible cultural heritage did not benefit the chàhjoh business, but just led to a influx of desperate graduate students from the Cantonese opera schools who get lost while trying to figure out their future in the music industry. How to sustain the vanishing life-style and keep the local culture has become a question.

In her article "Tea House Cantonese Opera-- A Vanishing Life-style in Guangzhou", our former MPhil student Cheung Ah Li talked about the above issues, based on her research in Guangzhou. Click the picture below to see her full article in Hong Kong Discovery (Vol 77), Anthropologists on the Road series.