Men with masks and empty eyes dance neurotically. In a corner, one man is laughing so hard he can hardly breathe as he tears apart a pile of Pravdas, the official Soviet newspaper. That man is Dmitri Shostakovich. All the dancers could be Dmitri Shostakovich.

City Community Dance Company’s latest, Testimony, is a dance theatre performance inspired by the life and music of the legendary Soviet composer. Choreographer Helen Lai lines up with actor Lee Chun Chow and a live piano trio to portray the absurdity and quixotic mind of Shostakovich, who was accused of being an enemy of the people by Stalin and faced harsh political persecution.

Though he lived under the constant threat of being arrested or even executed, Shostakovich was able to create music with passion and wit, and gave voice to the revolutionary socialism of his time. Helen Lai grew up under the influence of Shostakovich’s music as he is one of her father’s favourite composers. She admires his courage though she admits she would not be able survive what he did.
“Artists living under that period were facing threats and deaths every day. Hong Kong has a relatively free and peaceful environment, and we don’t need to deal with political pressure. I guess people who have been through the Cultural Revolution will understand more of how he felt at that time.” Having said that, she can still find similarities between the past and present. “Artists in Hong Kong still face commercial pressure, and live a double life balancing artistic elements with the realistic side of life.”

To Lai, Shostakovich’s music is difficult to choreograph, as melody and rhythm are so strong she sees a danger of the music dominating the dance: her production will incorporate acting and a silent movie. A silent movie? As the show commemorates the centennial of the musical legend, Lai wishes the audience to learn more about the life and times of Shostakovich. So against the background of the movie, Lee Chun Chow will play the St Petersburg-born composer as well as Shakespearean characters Hamlet and King Lear, with whom Shostakovich often related when he talked about his life.

Lee, three times winner of the Hong Kong Drama Awards’ Best Actor, makes his dance theatre debut with Testimony. But, he says, it hasn’t been easy. “Dance theatre puts a lot of emphasis on details and accuracy. [It’s persistent] in details like whether you put your hands horizontally, or if you have moved one or two steps further than scheduled. Actors don’t need to go that far. We use dialogue and simple gesture to express ourselves. But once we need to combine acting with music and dance, everything must be precise.”

Though Lee is not a fan of Shostakovich, he does have his own insight into the composer’s music and life. He describes Shostakovich’s music as “bitter”, piercing and full of edges and corners. It isn’t harmonic, but it makes you think. “Something can be immortal and go beyond life. Shostakovich could deal with the political pressure he faced, entertain the politics yet express himself, and fulfil his vision in music.”

When asked if it is schizophrenic to play various characters at the same time, Lee is thoughtful. He says he may be playing several roles, but he may also only be playing himself. “Actors often have to act like different people at the same time, and so it was with Shostakovich. The difference is Shostakovich was faced with real danger. He was playing a performance of life,” Lee concludes. “In this sense, his show was much more difficult than mine.”

Testimony will be performed at the Kwai Tsing Theatre Auditorium on 15 and 16 December at 8pm. A meet-the-artists session will be held after the 16th show. Tickets ranging from $120 to $220 available through URBTIX.