Dulwich boarders visit the London Eye
Shamil is suggestive of an increasing disconnect with the nation state – but conversely, an increasing sense of international solidarity between modern cities. If only the West End could travel East and Billy Elliot can- can across Hong Kong stages, complete cosmopolitan cultural homogeneity might one day be made a reality. A consummation devoutly to be wished? As Muriel Spark wrote of Scouting – she might have been writing of musical theatre – ‘For people who like that sort of thing, that is the sort of thing they like’.
hold a concert in Hong Kong, ‘there would only be 20 per cent attendance’. Having been a first-hand witness to Charles’ musical-theatre addiction, I find this extraordinary. He is, however, adamant: in Hong Kong, he had never before seen a musical and was ‘very impressed’ after his first experience – a visit to Matilda . He was particularly shocked by the sheer number of child actors in this production. ‘I think in Hong Kong very, very few parents would let their children be in the acting industry… Culture is not highly respected there’. And his admiration
for those involved in Matilda is dwarfed by his obsession with Billy Elliot , a musical he has seen some 17 times since coming to London. If, as Charles suggests, one’s identity as a Londoner can be measured in receipts for the Victoria Palace – a dubious hypothesis, I concede – we must surely conclude that Charles Cheung is London in its very essence. The self-identification as ‘Londoner’ by all three of these students indicates an attachment to city over country. The division between urban and rural citizens highlighted by Kamil and
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