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Male strippers, rope bondage: inside 18+ Central, Hong Kong’s first consumer adult show

Aimed at women and couples, 18+ Central has passed security checks and placated the censors. There will be meet-and-greets with porn stars and a chance to watch Pricasso who paints with a very unusual brush ...

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Artists perform shibari a Japanese rope bondage technique, in a show called Dance of a Geisha at the Sexpo Sydney 2016 exhibition. Photo: AFP

If you’ve never met a porn star now is your chance, as Hong Kong steps into the unknown by hosting the city’s first consumer adult show on the Central harbourfront.

Inside two giant purpose-built tents, in the shadow of the Hong Kong government headquarters and PLA’s Central Barracks, 18+ Central will feature a host of erotic, acrobatic and artistic performances – including an artist who paints with his penis – alongside sex-related workshops, a sex toys marketplace and more. The event will take place from April 5 to 8.

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Billed as an adult carnival, and with the aim of appealing mainly to women and couples, it may not be as racy as it sounds. One tent, Chic, will host performances and activities not particularly sex-related; while in the other, Wild, anything with even the slightest potential to frighten the horses will be hidden from public view.

Kenny Lo, CEO of organiser Vertical Expo Services.
Kenny Lo, CEO of organiser Vertical Expo Services.

“It’s a carnival, with 10 shows and five stages, but instead of the usual music or beer carnival, there are elements of an adult show,” says Kenny Lo, CEO of organiser Vertical Expo Services, which also organised the Asia Adult Expo in Hong Kong. “We’re differentiated from most adult shows, which are more or less just thinking about retailing adult products. Our major focus is on workshops and performances; we emphasise experience more.”

Even this relatively tame offering, has taken a long time to get here, and has faced numerous hurdles. Consider that only 17 years ago police were raiding retailer Fetish Fashion for hosting a totally private, entirely consensual kinky party. Even the two tents at 18+ Central – with a capacity of about 4,000 people, costing US$1 million each and taking nearly three weeks to construct – are a result of conservatism, built after no permanent venue would accept the event.
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