Overview
An emotion-dripping tale of love, loneliness and yearning against a backdrop of festering societal tension — as shot with swoon-worthy red-hued imagery, too — Wong Kar-Wai's In the Mood for Love isn't easily forgotten. And, for the past 20 years, anyone who has seen the 1960s Hong Kong-set romantic drama hasn't wanted to. Based on their new live performance, that includes Rainbow Chan, Eugene Choi and Marcus Whale.
With In the Mood — A Love Letter to Wong Kar-Wai & Hong Kong, the trio join forces to pay tribute to this 2000 movie masterpiece — and to take inspiration from it. As streamed live at 9pm AEST on Saturday, September 26 from the Sydney Opera House's Joan Sutherland Theatre, they're serving up a moody, dreamy new song cycle that ponders and responds to In the Mood for Love's parting words: "that era is past, nothing that belonged to it exists anymore".
As well as new music by Chan and Whale, plus narration from Choi, this world-premiere performance will feature a set that'll look like it has been plucked from the movie, 60s-style costumes, a bossa nova dance and new renditions of the film's soundtrack — with plenty of sax. And, it'll also pair all of the above with visuals that are meant to ponder what Wong's feature would look like if it was made today. Basically, viewers are set for an ode and a re-interpretation, with the latter firmly relevant to the lockdown era.
If you can't watch along live, In the Mood — A Love Letter to Wong Kar-Wai & Hong Kong will also be available to stream on-demand from Saturday, September 26 .
Daniel Boud
In the Mood — A Love Letter to Wong Kar-Wai & Hong Kong streams at 9pm AEST on Saturday, September 26 — and will be available to watch on-demand afterwards.
Top image: Daniel Boud.