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Madame Tussauds Hong Kong

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Madame Tussauds Hong Kong
File:Madame Tussauds HK.jpg
The entrance to Madame Tussauds Hong Kong
Traditional Chinese 香港杜莎夫人蠟像館
Simplified Chinese 香港杜莎夫人蜡像馆

Madame Tussauds Hong Kong, part of the renowned chain of wax museums founded by Marie Tussaud of France, is located at the Peak Tower on Hong Kong Island in Hong Kong. It is the first Madame Tussauds museums in Asia, the other being the Shanghai branch, which opened in 2006 and the third branch at Singapore which opened in 2014.[1] The Hong Kong branch houses nearly 100 wax figures of internationally known personalities, with Asian figures taking up more than a third of the total, of which sixteen were Hong Kongers.[2][3] The wax figures are featured in a range of themed settings such as Hong Kong Glamour, Music Icons, Historical and National Heroes, The Champions and World Premiere.

History

The Peak Tower at Victoria Peak, Hong Kong.

In the late 1990s, Madame Tussauds had outlets spanning worldwide in major cities such as London, Amsterdam and Las Vegas, but none was in the Asia-Pacific region. When the "Madame Tussaud's Touring Attraction" ran in Asian cities of Singapore and Australia, proving to be highly popular, the Tussauds Group decided to open a permanent outlet in Asia to cater to such demand, and Hong Kong was chosen for its proximity to the Asian markets.[1]

Madame Tussauds Hong Kong opens at The Peak in 2000, and features nearly 100 wax figures of internationally known personalities and local celebrities to date – with Asian figures taking up more than a third of the total, of which sixteen were Hong Kongers. Asian celebrities and superstars have often graced the unveiling of their wax likenesses with sizeable groups of their fans tagging along. In September 2005, it began its renovation in its effort to bring an interactive and immersive entertainment experience to visitors. It re-opened at a cost of HK$20 million (US$2.6 million) on 18 May 2006, adding a further 700 square metres (7,500 sq ft) of exhibition space on three floors and five themed areas.[4] Visitors can journey through the attraction, stopping to mingle with the 'stars' in a range of themed settings including Hong Kong Glamour, Music Icons, Historical and National Heroes, The Champions and World Premiere.[1]

As of 2008, the museum is headed by Bret Pidgeon, who is currently the general manager of Madame Tussauds Hong Kong and Shanghai. He has worked for eight years for Madame Tussauds in New York previously.[5] The museum is accessible from Central via minibus, taxi or Peak Tram and opens all year round from 10 am to 10 pm daily. Admission fee is HK$140 (US$18) for adults and HK$70 for children aged between 3 and 11 years old.[6]

Wax figure making process

The wax likeness of singer and movie star Andy Lau.

In over one or more sittings, a highly skilled sculptor from Madame Tussauds Studios who is given direct access to the celebrity will record the colours of the hair and eyes, and over 500 precise body measurements are referenced.[7] Most important is to capture the look of the celebrity to reflect the personality of each unique individual. The next task is to make a clay model of the head and body which is used to create a mould. Wax cast of the head and hands are made from the mould, and the eyes are inserted. Each eye is hand-painted to achieve a perfect match of the original. Real human hair is then inserted painstakingly strand by strand.[7]

The head and hands are coloured using a blend of oil, water and acrylic colour. From the mould, the body is cast in fibreglass, and the head and hands are fitted to the fiberglass body and dressed in clothes that are often donated by the celebrity. The pose, clothes and expression on the face all contribute to making the figure as realistic as possible. The whole process usually takes up to six months by a team of 20 people to create[7] and cost about HK$1 million each.[8]

Unique figures

  • The figure of Miriam Yeung, unveiled on November 2006, is the first in the world designed to giggle via in-built sensors. Miriam is well known for her fun-loving and bubbly personality, and Madame Tussauds want to capture that essence in her figure.[9]
  • The figure of Connie Chan, unveiled on August 2006, was the first figure to appear in full Chinese regalia. The model's costume was inspired by the musical Only You, set in the Yuan Dynasty, in which Chan formerly starred.[10]
  • The figure of Bae Yong-joon, unveiled on May 2006, is the first Korean star to be included in a Madame Tussauds exhibition.[11]
  • The figure of Andy Lau, unveiled on April 2005, was the outlet first animatronic model that was crafted out of silicone rather than wax. Lau's animatronic heartbeat was modelled on a similar system installed in a replica of Brad Pitt at Madame Tussauds Amsterdam.[8]

Featured personalities

The list of featured celebrities sorted according to on-site themes are:[2]

Historical and national heroes

File:Jay Chou in Madame Tussauds Hong Kong.JPG
Jay Chou (周傑倫)
File:Michelle Yang.JPG
Michelle Yeoh (楊紫瓊)
File:Leo Ku.JPG
Leo Ku (古巨基)
  1. Leslie Cheung
  2. Diana, Princess of Wales
  3. Luciano Pavarotti
  4. Mahatma Gandhi
  5. Nelson Mandela
  6. Bill Clinton
  7. George W. Bush
  8. Barack Obama (added on 20 Jan 2009)[18]
  9. Mikhail Gorbachev
  10. Saddam Hussein
  11. The Duke of Edinburgh
  12. Elizabeth II
  13. The Prince of Wales
  14. The Princess Royal
  15. The Duke of Cambridge (added on 7 Aug 2007)[19]
  16. Adolf Hitler
  17. Sir Winston Churchill
  18. Rembrandt van Rijn
  19. Pablo Picasso
  20. Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
  21. Deng Xiaoping
  22. Jiang zemin
  23. Li Ka Shing
  24. Lee Kuan Yew
  25. Shigeru Yoshida
  26. Hu Jintao
  27. Albert Einstein
  28. John Howard
  29. Madame Tussauds
  30. Sun Yat-sen (added on July 2007)[13]
  31. Mao Zedong (added on July 2007)[13]
  32. Yang Liwei (added on July 2007)[13]
  33. Donald Tsang (added on 7 April 2008)[20]
  34. Narendra Modi[21]

Madame Tussauds Shanghai

The second Asian outlet is located in the Chinese city of Shanghai. Attracted by Shanghai's growing reputation and tourism volume in East Asia, the Tussauds Group approached Shanghai authorities to discuss the possibility of opening its second Asian location in early 2004. The Shanghai authorities agreed with the proposal and Madame Tussauds Shanghai (上海杜莎夫人臘像館) was opened on 1 May 2006 on the 10th floor of the New World Department Store at West Nanjing Road.[22]

The Shanghai outlet houses nearly 75 wax figures of local and internationally known celebrities to date, and will add more in its second and third phases.[23] The museum opens all year round from 10 am to 10 pm daily and it is divided up into seven themed sections: Glamour, Behind the Scenes, History and Heroes, Music, Film, Speed and Sport. Admission fee is RMB 135 (US$20) for adults and RMB 100 for students.[24] Madame Tussauds Shanghai is the Tussauds Group's sixth waxwork museum after London, Amsterdam, Las Vegas, New York City and Hong Kong.[23]

See also

References

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  3. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
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  5. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  6. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  7. ↑ 7.0 7.1 7.2 Madame Tussauds Hong Kong Guidebook (2006) – "Studio Secrets: Wax Figure Making Process".
  8. ↑ 8.0 8.1 Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  9. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  10. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  11. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  12. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  13. ↑ 13.0 13.1 13.2 13.3 Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  14. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  15. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  16. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
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  18. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  19. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  20. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  21. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  22. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  23. ↑ 23.0 23.1 Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  24. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.

External links

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