Karen Mok's current concert tour will be her last

It's one night only and Karen Mok is going out with a bang at her concert at the Singapore Indoor Stadium next month.

The Hong Kong songstress is in town for the Global Chinese Golden Chart Awards Showcase this evening and to make a surprise appearance before her concert.

At a press conference on Monday (May 27), Karen, 49, announced that she would be retiring from concert touring.

She told local media in Mandarin: "This will be the last time I perform on a major pop concert tour.

"You will see me do things that you have never and will never see again."

Her tour, titled The Ultimate Karen Mok Show, celebrates her 25th anniversary in the entertainment business.

It will be making a stop in Singapore for one night only on June 15.

The show promises to be a musical extravaganza and the "ultimate concert experience" - not surprising considering that the multi-talented entertainer has taken over the reins of the creative director role for this tour.

Speaking about her decision to move on from concert tours, Karen felt that it was the "right time".

She said: "Even on day one, when I started my career, I told myself 'One should really try to quit at the top, at the peak.'

"It will be very difficult because first of all, you need to know when your peak is, before you start going downhill."

Karen added that due to the addictive nature of the industry, performers will feel that their next peak, or next high, "will be the next one".

It's important, however, to have the "wisdom" of knowing when it will "max out".

She added: "I feel that now is the best time for me to call it a day and move on to the next thing."

GROWING THE CHINESE MUSICAL SCENE

Despite putting a pin in concert tours, the pop diva isn't straying too far from her roots as a performer for her future plans.

She revealed that she would like to grow the Chinese musical scene by producing and possibly acting in a Chinese musical.

"You look at China or this whole greater China, it's so massive! It would be stupid to not have a musical theatre industry.

"We need something like that. London has its West End, and New York has Broadway. I think Chinese audiences are ready for their own version," explained Karen.

The singer is no spring chicken when it comes to performing in musicals. She played Mimi in the Asian tour of the Broadway hit Rent in 2005.

Karen thinks that this might be her calling.

She said: "You have to incorporate singing, dancing, acting - and do it all at once.

"I think I'm in the position to do that. It's kind of like my job. My mission. My calling."

She has also set big goals for herself when it comes to growing this industry.

The singer admitted: "To actually grow such an industry we need original material, so hopefully I will be able to make some contributions towards this."

WORKING WITH ANG LEE AND TANYA CHUA

Karen also shared that she would love to work homegrown singer-songwriter Tanya Chua because she "knows (her) very well".

As for dream collaborations beyond Singapore, she revealed that she would like to work on a film musical with Oscar-winning director Ang Lee.

She gushed: "He is my hero... he can tackle any film genre.

"I got to meet him when I performed at the Golden Horse Awards ceremony last year and I told him that if he should ever consider doing a film musical, he should remember me."

THE ULTIMATE KAREN MOK SHOW IN SINGAPORE*

WHEN: 15 June, Saturday, 8pm

WHERE: Singapore Indoor Stadium

TICKETS: $108, $138, $168, $198, $228 (excludes booking fee)

*Tickets on sale now

bryanlim@asiaone.com