*******************************************************
The National Theatre of China will visit Hong Kong to perform "Beijing Fayuansi" in July. Starring National Class One Performer Xi Meijuan, the production is directed by renowned director Tian Qinxin.
"Beijing Fayuansi" is an adaptation of Li Ao's first full-length novel. Recounting events in the lives of Kang Youwei, Liang Qichao, Tan Sitong, Emperor Guangxu and Empress Dowager Cixi, and focusing on their efforts to put the country back on its feet during the late Qing dynasty, the story is told against the backdrop of Fayuan Temple in Beijing, where a series of historic events took place between 1888 and 1927.
The storyline centres on the days from September 11 to 21, 1898, and includes the meeting between Emperor Guangxu and Kang Youwei, the formation of the Hundred Day's Reform, Tan Sitong's gallantry and Liang Qichao's pursuit of Western learning, and reflects the sentiment of the people at that time.
Other performers in "Beijing Fayuansi" include famous actors Zhou Jie, Jia Yiping and Fang Xu.
Tian Qinxin has carved a niche in Chinese theatre with her fusion of contemporary artistic concepts and Eastern aesthetics, complex handling of dimensions temporal and spatial, and her use of striking visual impact. Some of her notable productions are "The Field of Life and Death", "Hurricane", "The Orphan of Zhao", "Student Zhao Ping", "The Yellow Storm", "The Beauty", "Red Rose and White Rose" and "Ming Dynasty".
Xi Meijuan is a National Class One Performer and currently among the cast of the Shanghai Dramatic Arts Centre. Xi has appeared in numerous stage productions, films and television dramas and has won a strong following. Stage productions in which she has performed include "Salam's Witch", "The Taming of the Shrew", "Those Left Behind" and "China Dream". She won the Plum Blossom Award for her acting in "China Dream".
Presented by the Leisure and Cultural Services Department, "Beijing Fayuansi" (in Putonghua with Chinese and English surtitles) will be staged at 7.45pm from July 21 to 23 (Thursday to Saturday) at the Grand Theatre, Hong Kong Cultural Centre. Tickets priced at $120 to $380 are now available at URBTIX (www.urbtix.hk). For telephone credit card bookings, please call 2111 5999. For programme enquiries and concessionary schemes, please call 2268 7325 or visit www.lcsd.gov.hk/CE/CulturalService/Programme/en/theatre/program_1171.html.
Ends/Thursday, June 16, 2016
Issued at HKT 11:00
NNNN