Fuzhou cultivates Tang Xianzu cultural brand by int'l theater exchange program
The city is holding a series of events to pay tribute to Chinese playwright Tang Xianzu from Sept. 28 to the end of October, with an aim of strengthening international cultural exchange.
Shared values
While Tang and Shakespeare lived a world away from each other, historians and theater experts say their plays share a sense of humanity, the characters they create have similar traits, and they both exhibit a love for language and poetic lyricism. The many literary classics of the two masters are being staged around the world.
Xiao Yi, vice chairman of the Jiangxi Provincial People's Political Consultative Conference and secretary of the CPC Fuzhou Municipal Committee, said in his speech at the opening ceremony, "By organizing the Tang Xianzu Theater Festival and the International Theater Exchange Month, Fuzhou aims to promote excellent traditional culture, tell Chinese stories in a more engaging manner and carry out Chinese and foreign cultural exchanges and cooperation to bring domestic and global attention to Tang Xianzu, Fuzhou, Jiangxi, thus increasing Chinese culture's presence and influence.”
Among Tang's many great masterpieces, "The Peony Pavilion" is generally considered to be the greatest of his works. Akin to Shakespeare's "Romeo and Juliet," "The Peony Pavilion" depicts the love story of star-crossed lovers Liu Mengmei and Du Liniang. Their romance overcomes all difficulties, transcending time and space, life and death.
Andrew Ould, acting consul general of the British Consulate-General in Guangzhou, said Tang's stories "beautifully presents Chinese culture and history. And like Shakespeare, Tang Xianzu covers the whole range of human emotions and experiences. Their works highlight our common humanity and refocus our attention on what we share and what unites us."
Yi Lianhong (R), deputy secretary of the CPC Jiangxi Provincial Committee and acting governor of Jiangxi province, presents a gift to Andrew Ould (L), acting consul general of the British Consulate General in Guangzhou, in Fuzhou, Jiangxi province on Sept. 28, 2018. [Photo provided by the British Consulate General in Guangzhou]
"The U.K. government is keen to promote Tang's cultural legacy and to support Fuzhou to publish an English version of 'The Peony Pavilion' in the U.K.," Ould said.
Ji Guoping, an expert on Tang Xianzu at China Theater Association, said that though any similarity between the work of Tang and Shakespeare is coincidental as England had very little contact with China in the early 1600s, it was still readily apparent that they had shared values and similar artistic creations.
"The characters they created demonstrate these writers' pursuit of freedom, love, well-being and justice," Ji said, adding that the two giants left behind an unlimited imaginative space for spiritual dialogue between the East and the West.
