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Chloe Loung

If all the world’s a stage, then Hong Kong must be a one-man show.
Shakespeare takes centre stage this weekend at the West Kowloon Cultural District (WestK) with Tibetan Hamlets and Ming-dynasty Othellos, while a North Point cafe transforms into an after-hours parlour for natural wines and flash tattoos.
For those craving a slower scene, a wellness retreat will be hosted at a five-star hotel, and a pet playground has just opened inside the island’s largest lifestyle mall.
Take a seat and enjoy the show.
1. Hong Kong International Shakespeare Festival

An international performing arts platform dedicated exclusively to The Bard, the Hong Kong International Shakespeare Festival returns this weekend, organised by the Tang Shu-wing Theatre Studio.
Running until June 21 across venues at WestK and the Hong Kong Cultural Centre, the 2026 edition brings together acclaimed theatre companies and artists from Hong Kong and around the world.
The festival features new cross-cultural interpretations of the classics with distinctly Asian and Eastern European sensibilities. The programme includes an Othello that takes place in the late Ming dynasty, a solo Macbeth performance, and Romanian and Tibetan versions of Hamlet.
Other renditions include The Rape of Lucrece, Twelfth Night, Ophelia, Titus Andronicus 2.0, King Lear and Henry V.
For more information, click here.
2. Southside Pawty












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The Southside has officially opened its fully upgraded indoor cat and dog playground at the mall’s LG atrium, with a giant Shiba Inu sculpture that is hard to miss.
The new space features installations for a day out with your furry best friend, including themed photo stations and an agility course, complete with hoops and obstacles.
The launch also highlights The Southside’s certified pet-inclusive stores, with tenants spanning watches, fashion, food, electronics and more.
Dedicated pet retailers and services include The Barkyard for its grooming and dog pool, Kanine for accessories, Furri Foods, and pet-friendly dining at N+ Burger.
The mall has also upgraded its fleet of complimentary pet strollers with clip-on mini fans and has introduced a limited-edition supercar-design stroller. You can also get up to three hours of complimentary parking.
For more information, click here.
The Southside, 11 Heung Yip Road, Wong Chuk Hang
3. Skin Contact












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This pop-up pairs natural wine pours with flash tattoos and live music at Coffeelin, a neighbourhood cafe and bar, for one night only on June 5.
Running from 7.30pm to 11.30pm, the event will see the venue transform into a tasting room with four natural wines by Purple Rain Wine and four bites to pair.
Live tattoo sessions will go throughout the night on a first-come, first-served basis. The flash designs have been created by four Hong Kong-based artists: @tjs.tattoo, @chunntattoo, @silentspeaker_tattoo and @radpunkrock.
Spinning a vinyl-only soundtrack, DJ Daniel Boswarva will set the mood throughout the night.
Coffeelin, 228 Electric Road, North Point
4. The Art of Balance

In celebration of Global Wellness Day this June, Beans Retreat has partnered with The Langham, Hong Kong hotel to present The Art of Balance, an immersive wellness retreat that invites guests to an afternoon of restorative rituals, blending movement, sound, mindful tasting and quiet reflection.
Taking place on two days in June, the first day of the programme falls on June 7.
The Art of Balance is led by wellness practitioners, a therapeutic harpist and a mindful coffee specialist. Guests will be guided through a restorative yoga stretch and breath ritual before sinking into a live harp immersion and a mindful Qi coffee mixology session.
The retreat then turns inward with guided journaling, followed by a signature afternoon tea at The Langham’s Palm Court.
For more information, click here.
The Langham, Hong Kong, 8 Peking Road, Tsim Sha Tsui
5. Backrooms


Twenty-year-old YouTube creator Kane Parsons delivers an astonishing debut with the unsettling analogue horror film Backrooms.
Adapted from his own web series that was inspired by a popular online “creepypasta” recounting labyrinthine liminal spaces, the film stars Chiwetel Ejiofor and Renate Reinsve as a pair of unfortunate souls trapped in a network of seemingly impossible subterranean rooms.
Revered tastemakers A24 greenlit the film, with horror veterans James Wan (The Conjuring) and Osgood Perkins (Longlegs) among its producers.
The film is set in 1990, where failed architect Clark (Ejiofor) runs a furniture showroom. After his marriage collapses – in part due to his excessive drinking – he moves into the showroom’s bedding department full time, where he witnesses strange nighttime phenomena affecting the store’s power.
Upon investigation, Clark discovers an invisible doorway in one of the walls that leads into a bizarre yellow room filled with discarded furniture. The room is connected to a series of interconnected spaces… Read our full review.
Backrooms opens in Hong Kong cinemas on June 6.


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A dog is pictured at one of the photo stations at The Southside’s fully upgraded indoor cat and dog playground. Photo: The Southside


The Hong Kong International Shakespeare Festival brings together acclaimed theatre companies and artists from Hong Kong and around the world. Photo: WestK

Beans Retreat has partnered with The Langham, Hong Kong hotel to present The Art of Balance, an immersive wellness retreat. Photo: Instagram/beans.retreat

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A scene from Charlie and the Chocolate Factory the musical. The long-running production that has enjoyed success on London’s West End and Broadway will debut in Hong Kong on November 4, 2026.

A scene from Charlie and the Chocolate Factory the musical.

Oliver Wong (left) and Daniel Plimpton perform during the media announcement of Charlie and the Chocolate Factory in Hong Kong in May 2026.

Plimpton performs during the media announcement of Charlie and the Chocolate Factory in Hong Kong in May 2026.

Wong sings “Golden Ticket” during the media announcement of Charlie and the Chocolate Factory in Hong Kong in May 2026.

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Steamed pork patty with mud crab from Kam Tung Kitchen. Photo: Jonathan Wong

Pineapple bun with butter at Cheung Hing Coffee Shop. Photo: SCMP

The signature bistecca alla fiorentina at Carna by Dario Cecchini. Photo: Carna by Dario Cecchini

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Renate Reinsve in a still from Backrooms.

Chiwetel Ejiofor in a still from Backrooms. The film taps into pop culture’s growing obsession with liminal spaces.

Director Kane Parsons on the set of his film Backrooms.

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A still from Exit 8 (2025).

For this Hong Kong yo-yo champion, it’s not a toy, it’s art

Chan describes yo-yo as “skill-based.” “The possibility of what a yo-yo can do now is pretty insane.”


Leo Chan Matsumoto redefines yo-yoing as a high-skill competitive sport and expressive art form, and he wants others to do the same. Photo: Kayla Chan


Leo Chan Matsumoto has his own signature yo-yo models, with the green colourway pictured. Photo: Kayla Chan

“There’s this stigma that a yo-yo is just something that is child’s play, but that’s not true, and I want to change that,” Chan Matsumoto says. Photo: Kayla Chan

Chan Matsumoto pictured at the semi-finals in the 2025 World Yo-Yo Contest. Photo: Instagram/worldyoyocontest

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Bring your dog or cat to an upgraded indoor pet playground, experience Shakespeare with a twist, watch a new hit horror film and more


Bring your dog or cat to an upgraded indoor pet playground, experience Shakespeare with a twist, watch a new hit horror film and more.


5 of the best things to do in Hong Kong this weekend, June 5-7

.css-1c6uqr6{color:inherit;font-weight:inherit;font-size:inherit;font-family:inherit;line-height:inherit;overflow-wrap:break-word;}Bring your dog or cat to an upgraded indoor pet playground, experience Shakespeare with a twist, watch a new hit horror film and more

1. Hong Kong International Shakespeare Festival

Bring your dog or cat to an upgraded indoor pet playground, experience Shakespeare with a twist, watch a new hit horror film and more