Wardrobe of Wonders

Behind the myriad dazzling costumes in every Hong Kong Ballet production is Joanne Chong, the company’s fairy godmother who breathes new life into old dancewear

- Zabrina Lo.

It usually takes a flawless fouetté en tournant or a highly synchronised pas de deux for the silence in a theatre to be broken by gasps of admiration from the audience. But in several recent productions by the Hong Kong Ballet, including Jewels last May, Romeo + Juliet last June and The Nutcracker last Christmas, the elaborate costumes for a moment stole the spotlight from the dancers, with audible oohs and aahs from the audience even before the dancers started to move.

In The Nutcracker, for instance, there seemed to be no end to the outfits, as dancers—wearing glittery snow fairy tutus, qipao-style nightgowns or dresses covered in butterflies, or sporting gigantic peony petals, cockatoos’ yellow crests or lush green and blue peacock feathers— transported the audience from the Cultural Centre to the Sugar Plum Fairy’s magical kingdom or glamorous 1920s Hong Kong. The final costume count: 240.

That is only a tiny fraction of all the costumes that Joanne Chong, the ballet company’s director of wardrobe, and her small team of five whip up every few months. The company is now preparing for its next large production after a seven-month hiatus caused by the fifth wave of the pandemic. Chong has been sewing away in her 4,000 sq ft “cave of wonders” in San Po Kong, where she keeps most of the 43-year-old company’s costumes dating back to its early years.