"Senior Ballerina Dismissed by Hong Kong Ballet" - By May Tsang

Senior Ballerina Dismissed by Hong Kong Ballet / 關心香港芭蕾舞團的必要看!by May TsangOn 25 January the Sunday Morning Post printed the shocking news that Hong Kong Ballet’s (HKB) prima ballerina Faye Leung was dismissed with immediate effect on the evening of Friday 23 January. This could not have come at a worse time. The company is still reeling from the resignations of much-respected AD John Meehan and CEO Stacey Morse in the second half of 2008 and has a mixed bill scheduled in three weeks’ time with Leung cast in all four ballets.According to Leung, she was advised of the dismissal by board member Linda Fung who said it was a board decision – Meehan, who is still AD until the end of this month, told the Post he had not even been informed she was being fired. Leung asked if she could complete the current season which ends this May but was told that she must leave immediately. When she asked why she was being dismissed, Leung says Fung told her that the board felt she and the company were “going in different directions”. “I was so shocked” Leung told the Post, “I didn’t do anything wrong.”In response to the Post’s enquiries, HKB’s Executive Director Evonne Tsui issued a statement confirming that Leung had been “released” from her employment on 23 January. The statement does not say why she was dismissed or explain why she was asked to leave without notice but implies that Leung is not needed by saying that the company has other strong principals, including Guest Principal Artist Tan Yuan Yuan. This is a bit like the US Olympic team saying they don’t need Michael Phelps just before the Games because the rest of the team are good too – in other words, it seems perverse. As for relying on Tan to fill the gap, the San Francisco-based ballerina has not yet confirmed any appearances with HKB for the coming year. Since joining in June 2007 she has appeared with them twice in Mainland China but only once in Hong Kong, prompting speculation that she sees HKB as a “backing band” to allow her to perform in China where she has a big following. Dismissing Leung is completely incomprehensible. She is an outstanding ballerina who excels in both classical and modern, narrative and abstract work. She is at her peak as a dancer and is almost invariably picked by visiting choreographers and repetiteurs to dance leading roles. In the past two years alone, she has been singled out by such distinguished names as Rudi van Dantzig, Ronald Hynd, Maina Gielgud and Stanton Welch. A small company like HKB simply cannot afford to lose someone of her talent and experience – her absence will leave a gaping hole in their resources.What is more, Leung is HKB’s longest-serving member (she joined in 1996) as well as its most senior ballerina. She has remained loyal to the company through difficult times despite the fact that her talent could easily have permitted her to move overseas. Strikingly attractive, she has turned down offers of acting and modelling contracts (a big deal in Hong Kong) to remain dedicated to ballet. She is highly professional and a team player who has been prepared to perform despite injuries, take supporting roles when asked to and work with a succession of different partners whom she has helped to groom and develop. She is extremely popular with local audiences and has often represented HKB in galas overseas.Setting aside the lack of simple decency in dismissing such a senior employee without notice and without apparent cause, Leung had been cast by guest repetiteurs/choreographers in all four works on the All Bach mixed bill which premieres on 13 February. Sandra Jennings of the Balanchine Trust told the Post “I am surprised and saddened to hear of the dismissal of Faye Leung. I just finished working with her on George Balanchine's " Concerto Barocco". I cast the ballet on behalf of the Balanchine Trust and it is a shame that the public won't get to see her dance the principal women in the ballet. She is a marvelous dancer with a great talent! I am very sorry!”All Bach has special significance as it is HKB’s first appearance in the prestigious HK Arts Festival since 1995. To sack a dancer who had been picked as first or second cast in every piece three weeks before the performances is an irresponsible act which suggests a disturbing ignorance of the complexities of casting and rehearsing ballets, especially in a company the size of HKB. Staging such an ambitious programme (which includes the company’s first attempt at Forsythe as well as its first performances of Concerto Barocco) when the AD will no longer be present to oversee it was bad enough – Meehan had intended to be there for the shows but is now leaving earlier - Leung's absence will compound the problem.Leung’s dismissal is mystifying. The reason she says was given to her verbally does not make much sense, as it is hard to see in what way she is not going in the same direction as the company. Programming for the rest of the year consists of ballets – Swan Lake, Cinderella, The Sleeping Beauty and The Nutcracker – which Leung has performed many times, so there is nothing new there. As for the future, with Meehan about to leave and no new AD even appointed let alone in post Leung says "We have no clue as to what the new direction is."Tsui's statement says “the highest standards of performance are expected from dancers in all aspects of professional life”. While Leung is certainly not guilty of professional misconduct in any normal sense, there have been persistent rumours of tension between her and Tan Yuan Yuan, who is apparently close to several board members (including Linda Fung) and appears to wield considerable influence. However, Leung assured the Post that she and Tan “are cool”. It is also possible that the “standards” expected of HKB’s dancers may include being seen and not heard. The dancers are demoralised and confused due to the uncertain situation which has persisted since Meehan’s resignation. Sources say they have asked repeatedly for their voices to be heard by the board but they have fallen on deaf ears. Leung has been among those who have spoken up.Perhaps the root of the situation may be found in the policies introduced by John Ying, who became HKB’s Chairman in March 2007. Ying’s energy and ambition to put the company on the international map are admirable and his ideas about taking a more business-oriented approach on corporate sponsorship and fund-raising make sense. More problematically, he is also insisting that the same approach be adopted in other areas. Dancers need to be nurtured over a period of time to develop a company with a balanced ensemble and distinctive style. They cannot be hired and fired at will without affecting the company’s artistic quality as well as its morale. The same goes for the artistic staff. Ying seems unwilling to accept this and apparently wants to re-write the rule book on ballet management, stating in several recent interviews that he believes HKB should be managed in a “corporate” style. When I expressed my concern to him about the lack of continuity after Meehan resigned just two years into his contract, Ying told me that nobody was "indispensable" and he didn’t see it as a problem if people came and went because in his business (investment banking in New York) that was normal. Ying has also stated that he intends HKB to be run by an “artistic team” of which the AD will be just one member. In practice, it looks as if this may mean Ying and some of the board members will be directly involved in artistic decisions such as programming or casting, with the power to overrule the AD if they see fit. Ironically Ying is a great admirer of Balanchine, who knew that artistic vision does not come from a “team” and would never under any circumstances have allowed the board to participate in such decisions. Tsui has told the Post that HKB expects to appoint a new AD in the first quarter of 2009. This is encouraging, but it is hard to imagine any worthwhile candidate taking the job or staying in it if they do not have artistic control. Ying has said the board will work "in a framework, with checks and balances, transparency and partnership". He will need to ensure this is indeed the case if he is to inspire confidence in the company's future.In order to attract and retain good dancers the company needs to offer a clear artistic policy, continuity and fair treatment. HKB is largely subsidised by tax-payers’ money and both the board and the Home Affairs Bureau are responsible for spending that money on building a strong company for Hong Kong. The worst case scenario could see HKB reduced to a group of young, inexperienced dancers serving as a backdrop to a succession of guest stars – a throwback to the situation the company was in 20 years ago and a huge step backwards after all the progress which has been made.As for Leung, I will miss watching her dance with HKB and wish her success wherever she goes next. Any company that hires her will be getting something special. ||