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The Fifth Beijing International Drama Festival to Kick Off

The first modern Chinese drama was produced by Chinese students in Japan in 1907, an adaptation of the American slave story Uncle Tom's Cabin. In 2007, this drama will be staged at the Great Hall of the People to celebrate the 100th anniversary of Chinese drama. It will be part of the closing ceremony of the Fifth Beijing International Drama Festival and will serve as the festival’s main theme.

The drama festival highlights various aspects of China’s dramatic arts, including musical drama, traditional drama, Peking Opera, Yue Opera from Southeast China’s Zhejiang Province and more. The curtain will rise on this year’s festival on April 17 and it will run through May 3. A total of 18, mostly traditional, dramas will be staged.

In addition to the closing ceremony, another highlight will be the opening ceremony and its Chinese-language version of the musical drama I Love You (dubbed “the most romantic drama in the history of Broadway”). Famed Chinese singer Lin Yilun will play the lead. Molly Bloom, a Spanish modern drama, is also recommended. This is also an item on the agenda of the Spanish Cultural Year in China.

Rickshaw Boy or Camel Xiangzi, adapted from one of famed Chinese contemporary writer Lao She’s most famous works, is another artistic treat. Though being performed again and again by several generations of actors, it is still a classic, even symbolic, Chinese drama.

Venues for the dramas, in addition to the Great Hall of the People, include: Capital Theatre, Poly Theatre, Chang’an Grand Theatre, Haidian Theatre and others theatres in the city.