Art center to stage lofty comeback of beloved opera series

"We have made revisions, updates and adapted the show for varied stage settings," Gao says.

Traditional Pingtan performances feature a simple setting of just two chairs and two performers telling stories through singing, dialogue and the playing of traditional Chinese string instruments.

At the Shanghai Oriental Art Center, the performance will take place in the large opera hall. "There will be six actors on the stage, and we will take up hundreds of characters in the book," Gao says. The greatest challenge in adapting the novel for Pingtan was that there were many "quiet moments" when nobody spoke a line.

"We spent so much time creating the right words to fill in these silent moments in the book," Gao says."The effort won recognition from Jin Yucheng and filmmaker Wong Kar-Wei, who is adapting the book for movie and TV screens."

This year marks the centennial celebration for the birth of the Communist Party of China, and the Classic Chinese Operas Series will highlight productions featuring the history of the CPC, such as Peking Opera piece The Azalea Mountain and Huju Opera plays, Jiang Jie and Top Secret, both productions by the Shanghai Huju Opera Troupe.

Shi Xiaming, deputy director of the Jiangsu Kunqu Opera Theater, will play the lead role on April 21 in a new production of Kunqu Opera, Mei Lanfang.

Based on true stories of Peking Opera maestro artist Mei Lanfang, the Kunqu Opera production tells of the youthful period when Mei made his debut in Shanghai.

"Few new productions of Kunqu Opera have succeeded set in the modern age. All the failed attempts were due to disrespect for tradition or turning away from the authentic aesthetics of Kunqu," says Shi.

"We took great risk in creating the production and had the premiere in October 2019. I was greatly inspired by Maestro Mei Lanfang himself during the creative process.

"Maestro Mei used to say Shanghai was a difficult place for opera singers, and I'd like to perform for the picky audiences in Shanghai an honest and refined Kunqu Opera of Mei Lanfang."