Le French May Arts Festival 2012
2 April – 24 June 2012
Since its inception in 1993, Le French May has matured into one of the largest French arts festivals in Asia and has staged over 500 world-class events that bring the spirit of France to Hong Kong.

Francophiles can savour a rich cornucopia of French culture, encompassing visual arts, opera, classical and contemporary music, dance, theatre, cinema and fashion. Its popular focus on the French culinary arts has developed into a stand-alone programme called Le French GourMay.

Here are some of the highlights of Le French May 2012:
Visual Arts
Picasso – Masterpieces from Musée National Picasso, Paris: This is the city’s largest-ever Picasso exhibition featuring the master’s 48 oil paintings and 7 sculptures including some of the artist’s most famous works “The Barefoot Girl”, “Woman in Red Armchair” and “Portrait of Dora Maar”. These works characterize Picasso’s various artistic styles and celebrate each notable period of the artist’s eight decade career including the Blue period, the Rose period and his iconic cubism. (19 May – 22 July)
Opera
Opera Hong Kong, directed by the internationally acclaimed tenor Warren Mok, presents a new production of the French opera Carmen, casting international stars under Philippe Arlaud’s direction. Premiered in Paris in 1875, Carmen is one of the world’s most performed operas, composed by Georges Bizet (1838-1875), based on Prosper Mérimée’s novel - a universal story of passion, betrayal and revenge. (10 – 13 May)
Classical Music
Opening Concert - Fauré’s Requiem by Hong Kong Sinfonietta: To commemorate the 150th birthday of the great impressionist composer Debussy, Hong Kong Sinfonietta, under the baton of its Music Director Yip Wing-sie, will open the concert with his Danses Sacrée et Profane for harp and strings. This is a star-studded grand opening for the 20th edition of Le French May! (12 April)
Modern Music
Growing out of hip hop, the music of Chinese Man, a French hip-hop band, has been constantly inspired by all musical winds such as dub, afro-beat, baile funk and traditional genres. Much anticipated, Chinese Man will be presenting to the audience their last album Racing with the sun in a brand new show with drum machines, turntables and videos. (9 June)
Dance
Pioneer of an original form of expression, combining equestrian art, music, dance and acting, Bartabas has invented and directed a new form of performing arts: equestrian theatre. In his latest production, Le Centaure et L'Animal, Bartabas starts a pas de deux (dance for two) with the Japanese dance master, punctuated by phrases extracted from Les Chants de Maldoror by Comte de Lautréamont. (14, 15, 17 -19 May)
Cinema
Cities in Cinema: Paris - Hong Kong: Following the success of last year’s cinema retrospective “NOIR”, Le French May 2012 will continue a cultural dialogue between Hong Kong and Paris via a series of screenings of Hong Kong and French films portraying the cityscape. (5 – 30 May)
Theatre
As one of the most prominent French theatre comedians, Jacques Weber returns to the stage to share with us some of the most beautiful scripts in our history. The show Brightness of Life consists of various scripts which can make us laugh and cry from our hearts, no matter they are classical or contemporary, famous or unpublished. (12 – 14 June)
Le French Fashion May
Stylist Olivier Chatenet, working through the famous brands from Alaia to Hermes, and cherished by many stars, is an absolute fan of Yves Saint Laurent. The exhibition Crazy About Yves features his incredible private collection of trench, blouses, coats, blazers, suits and safari jackets, tuxedos dedicated to the fashion design master. (19 May – 11 June)
Le French GourMay
For the fourth year in a row, Le French GourMay will offer visitors of Hong Kong and Macau one month to discover the best of French wines and gastronomy. From 1 to 31 May, local Hong Kong and Macau restaurants, starred chefs and fine food designers, as well as wine importers and distributors will celebrate the month of “gourmands” and “gourmets” with dedicated menus, wine tastings, promotions and workshops.

Each year, Le French GourMay honors the wine from a different region of France, and this year, Bordeaux has been chosen. Bordeaux is not only world-famous for its fine wines and top-flight vineyards, it has also preserved an attractive architectural, cultural and culinary heritage. (1 – 30 May)

For details of more exciting programmes of Le French May and the ticketing information, please visit www.frenchmay.com.

Social Bookmarks