Live Drawing and Animation Meet Music in a ‘New Nutcracker’

Description

Following his successful Hong Kong début last year, renowned French illustrator and animator Grégoire Pont brings his Cinesthetics concept back to Hong Kong for a cross-disciplinary double header built around two classical music favourites. Joined once more by the forward-thinking Hong Kong Sinfonietta, led by conductor Vivian Ip, Pont will retell Tchaikovsky’s The Nutcracker with local artist Yuri Ng as narrator, before visualising the rural charm of Beethoven’s “Pastorale” in real time. Situated in a space where live drawing, animation and classical music meet, the programme explores how images can deepen the emotion, rhythm and narrative of orchestral music without overshadowing it.

Ip is Hong Kong Sinfonietta’s associate conductor from 2023 to 2026 and won third prize at the 2025 International Ferenc Fricsay Conducting Competition. Pont, meanwhile, is known for combining hand-drawn visuals with live performance. Joining this programme as narrator, local artist Ng connects the music and image live, weaving a multimedia concert shaped by evocative sound, movement, illustration and live storytelling.

On 21 and 22 August, the performances will both be held from 19:30 onwards. For a straighter reading of “Pastorale,” it’s worth noting that  Hong Kong Philharmonic Orchestra will also perform Beethoven’s beloved sixth symphony for the September season opening, led by heavyweight conductor Manfred Honeck, on 16–17 September.