The 2nd CIIF Social Capital School Drama Competition Came to a Successful End

The Final of the 2nd Social Capital School Drama Competition was successfully held on 16 March 2014 at the Academic Community Hall, Hong Kong Baptist University with an attendance of over 700 audience from different sectors of the society. Baptist Lui Ming Choi Secondary School won the Overall Championship Award for its outstanding performance of “Taste of Neighourhood”.

The theme of the competition was “Energise the Community, Build a Caring Society”. Over 30 secondary schools and around 3,000 teachers, students and parents as well as the general public have been mobilised through the competition and its pre-event programmes like school tours, drama demonstrations and script writing workshops held from August last year. In February this year, judge panel visited all the schools to do the screening and finally selected the top five to enter the Final.

Officiating at the Final, the Secretary for Labour and Welfare, Mr Matthew Cheung Kin-chung, commended the enthusiastic participation of the students in bringing out the concept of social capital through their plays. He said, “Teamwork is most important in drama performance. Through the important teamwork in drama performance, participating students can experience the CIIF spirit of creating social capital with reciprocity and mutual help which are key in building a caring community. Moreover, through the research during the play writing process, all students involved in the competition have learnt more about social capital and how it benefits the community.”

The Chairman of the CIIF Committee, Dr Lam Ching-choi said, “This is the second competition we have organised. We are glad that compared to the first competition, the second one not only attracts more participating schools but also sees a better and more creative demonstration of social capital concept in the dramas. I sincerely hope that the biannual competition will become an effective platform for teachers and students to participate in social capital development.”

The judge panel of the Final comprised renowned scriptwriter, Mr Raymond To; famous stage performer, Ms Alice Lau; Artistic Director of The Nonsensemakers, Mr Rensen Chan; Vice-chairperson of the CIIF Committee, Professor Joe Leung; and Convenor of the Drama Competition Working Group and CIIF Committee Member, Ms Lui Oi-ling. They all commended the creativity and diversity of the scripts of various plays. They said that among the plays, the Overall Championship was the most impressive and well organised. Renowned theatre veteran, Mr Joey Leung, was invited as a special guest to the Final to share his acting experience with the audience.

The five finalists were (listed alphabetically) Baptist Lui Ming Choi Secondary School, Christ College, Cotton Spinners Association Secondary School, Fortress Hill Methodist Secondary School and Hotung Secondary School. The award list is as follows:

Overall Championship :	Baptist Lui Ming Choi Secondary School
Best Rendition of Social Capital Concept:	Hotung Secondary School
Best Director:	Christ College Chu Sai Kit
Best Actor / Actress:	Baptist Lui Ming Choi Secondary School Mak Yuen Ching
Best Stage Effect:	Cotton Spinners Association Secondary School
Most Moved (voted by audience):	Baptist Lui Ming Choi Secondary School

Baptist Lui Ming Choi Secondary School wins the Overall Championship and Most Moved award (voted by audience) for its outstanding performance of “Taste of Neighourhood”.	Best Rendition of Social Capital Concept: Hotung Secondary School	Best Stage Effect: Cotton Spinners Association Secondary School
Best Director: Chu Sai Kit from Christ College	Chairman of the CIIF Committee, Dr Lam Ching-choi (third left) in a group photo of judge panel. (From left)Artistic Director of The Nonsensemakers, Mr Rensen Chan; Convenor of the Drama Competition Working Group and CIIF Committee Member, Ms Lui Oi-ling; Chairman of the CIIF Committee, Dr Lam Ching-choi; renowned scriptwriter, Mr Raymond To; famous stage performer, Ms Alice Lau and Vice-chairperson of the CIIF Committee, Professor Joe Leung.	Mr Joey Leung, a special guest at the Final, shares his acting experience with students.
Best Actress: Mak Yuen Ching from Baptist Lui Ming Choi Secondary School	The Secretary for Labour and Welfare, Mr Matthew Cheung Kin-chung, commends the enthusiastic participation of the students in bringing out the concept of social capital through their plays.

The Secretary for Labour and Welfare, Mr Matthew Cheung Kin-chung (back row, eighth right) in a group photo with the Chairman of the CIIF Committee, Dr Lam Ching-choi (back row, ninth right), as well as other CIIF Committee members, judges and winning teams at the 2nd Social Capital School Drama Competition.