This year, Festival Accès Asie presents its twelfth edition of Moments, an interactive event that uses cyber-technology to bring together artists from different Canadian cities
This time, Sing, Juk Sing reunites Vancouver-based musician Toa Wong and Montreal visual artist Mary Sui Yee Wong. This father and daughter performance duo will perform together live, each from their respective city, in this co production between OBORO in Montreal and Centre A in Vancouver.
Wishing to fulfill her childhood dream of becoming a pop music star, Mary Sui Yee Wong joins her father, master musician Toa Wong, to create a new and provocative work of art dealing with the complex phenomena of internalized racism, acculturation and hybridization. By juxtaposing their relationship as father-daughter, visual artist and musician, the collaborators will explore their duality through language, music, images, movement, memory and technology and give voice to inner fears: the fear of not-belonging, not measuring up, and not being remembered. First and foremost, Sing, Juk Sing seeks a festive occasion to meet and to highlight the importance of communication.
Master Toa Wong started studying Cantonese opera at the age of 14. He later began playing his erhu, a Chinese violin, to accompany several of Hong Kong’s most renowned performers of the time. He immigrated to Canada in 1961, after accepting the invitation from the Jin Wah Sing Music Association in Vancouver, where he played first erhu in the orchestra. Toa Wong divides his time between performing and teaching music and singing. Several of his students have gone on to found their own professional music associations across Canada, the United States, England, France, and Australia. Toa Wong has traveled the world performing and imparting the tradition of Cantonese opera. He now lives in Vancouver, where he still teaches and is actively involved in his community.
Born in Hong Kong but having immigrated to Canada in 1963, the multidisciplinary artist Mary Sui Yee Wong completed her studies at Concordia University in 2003. Very active in the visual arts milieu, she has participated in several solo and group exhibitions in China, Germany, South Korea, Scotland, Toronto, Vancouver, and Montreal. In addition to collaborating on various curatorial projects, Mary Sui Yee Wong has also shown her commitment to the arts community by serving on the boards of several galleries such as Optica and Articule, the Little Pear Garden Collective; she is also an honorary member of the Yuet Sing Operatic Society. From 2002 to 2005, Mary Sui Yee Wong coordinated Concordia’s MFA & Studio Arts Visiting Artist Programs at Concordia University, where she currently holds a position as Assistant Professor in Studio Art.
Toa Wong – Master musician based in Vancouver
Mary Sui Yee Wong – Visual artist based in Montreal