The 36th Macau Arts Festival opensin May 2026 with one of its most notable cross-genre works, 1014, bringing together dei seoi nam yam and jazz.
Dei seoi nam yam is a traditional narrative-singing form popular in the Pearl River Delta. It originated in Guangzhou and Foshan in the late nineteenth century and is known for its distinctive melodies and rhythms. Yuen Siu-fai is a celebrated contemporary Cantonese opera and traditional-theater artist, while Lin Hoi-ling is a younger actor active in Hong Kong and Macau.
1014 explores the nature and limits of human memory in the digital age, under the theme of Memory and Technology. The ancient singing style of dei seoi nam yam meets contemporary jazz improvisation in a musical dialogue across time and space, inviting audiences to ask: as technology increasingly encroaches on the privacy of memory, how can we protect cultural memories that cannot be replicated?
The work both pays tribute to Lingnan intangible cultural heritage and reflects Macau’s character as a meeting point of diverse cultures.
Date:May 2026 (during the Macau Arts Festival)
Venue:Macau
Starring:Yuen Siu-fai and Lin Hoi-ling
Format:Cross-genre music theater (dei seoi nam yam × jazz)