Theatrical performances hit the world

The combination of stage and screen is a popular way of enjoying performing arts, which can be shared by audiences around the globe. For the same price as going to a movie, audiences can enjoy theatrical productions from around the world.

From the end of April through June, 10 HD recordings of China’s recent top stage and dance productions are appearing for the first time in the United Kingdom, touring cities including London, Edinburgh, Cambridge and Liverpool.

The project Global Stage on Screen opened with the HD UK premiere screening in London of the National Ballet of China’s version of Giselle — an all-time favourite for ballet fans — on 29 April.

In 1960, the National Ballet of China staged its first performance of the romantic classic Giselle, which has since been regarded as one of its three founding repertoires.

With Feng Ying, president of the National Ballet of China, as the production’s director and producer, this version of Giselle features Qiu Yunting, the principal dancer of the Chinese ballet company playing the lead role, a young and innocent peasant girl who falls in love with Albrecht, a Duke, played by dancer Wu Sicong, who hides his royal identity from her.

When Giselle discovers she has been deceived, she is driven to madness and dies of a broken heart.

Other highlights include Writing in Water by Stan Lai, the director and scriptwriter of the Chinese theatrical production.

Featuring actor He Jiong as He Shi and actress Huang Yici, it follows the extraordinary journey of He Shi, a man who comes back to Hong Kong after his studies in the UK to start the Happyology Programme. He hopes that he can introduce a richer, spiritual fulfillment to people. However, he feels discouraged by his business partners, who have their minds set solely on profit.

He Shi comes across a mysterious little girl — played by Huang — when he’s about to inherit an old beach house from his late mother. Together with the little girl, He Shi embarks on a spiritual journey that enables him to experience life on an unimaginable level.

Principle by Hong Kong Repertory Theatre and Uncle Vanya, a Chinese stage adaptation of the classic play of the same title by Anton Chekhov, by the Shanghai Dramatic Arts Centre, will also be screened during the tour.

Sacrifice, a classic Peking Opera, featuring actress Wang Peiyu, is also listed on the screening programme, which will introduce the 200-year-old art form, Peking Opera, or jingju, to audiences in the UK.

Wang, a star of the modern Peking Opera stage, known for her solid performing techniques and vivid portrayal of male roles, plays the role of Cheng Ying, who sacrifices his baby son to replace the only survivor and heir of a persecuted family. Cheng then raises the heir as his own, only to reveal the truth when the young man grows up and seeks revenge.

Set in the Yuan Dynasty (1271-1368), Sacrifice is based on the classic Chinese tragedy The Orphan of Zhao.

“Many of these are well-known Western classics with an Eastern interpretation, and some of these are original stories that are less familiar to local audiences. We hope that this programme will offer audiences in the UK a glimpse of China’s top performing arts,” says Li Congzhou, CEO of Beijing-headquartered ATW Culture, who co-initiated Global Stage on Screen along with UK-China Film Collab, a UK NGO for the research, practice and creation of “modern film diplomacy”.

Besides theatres in the UK, the screenings are also shown at universities there, Li adds.

“We selected the content together with our partner ATW, hoping to combine content that showcases the tradition of Chinese stage art and its modern standard, as well as Chinese interpretations of Western classics,” says Hiu Man Chan, founder and executive director of UK-China Film Collab.