90% Productions Make Shanghai Debut at Arts Festival

The 25th China Shanghai International Arts Festival will present 60 stage productions and 170 performances for local audiences. Nearly 90 percent of the productions will make their Shanghai debuts, while 13 will be exclusive to Shanghai, with no performances elsewhere in China.

The festival will open on October 17 with "Shanghai Grand Opera House and Friends," the inaugural concert of the Shanghai Grand Opera House, and conclude on November 15 with the American Ballet Theater's production "Swan Lake."

Among the highlights in the music category will be the Giacomo Puccini Opera "Tosca," the Giuseppe Verdi Opera "Aida" and the Richard Strauss Opera "Der Rosenkavalier," as well as the Shostakovich Symphonies Cycle and the Beethoven Piano Concertos Cycle. Famous pianists Lang Lang, Wang Yujia, Liu Xiaoyu and Alexandre Kantorow will also perform on the festival stage.

Dance lovers will be treated to a diverse lineup of performances, including the Bolshoi Ballet's "Don Quixote," Akram Khan Company's "Thikra: Night of Remembering," Shanghai Opera House's "Dagger Society," and Shanghai Dance Theater's "The Red Clouds over the Horizon."

In the drama and Chinese Opera categories, Beijing People's Art Theater will present two contrasting takes on Shakespeare's "Hamlet" – a classic staging of the play and the avant-garde production "Hamlet and More."

Ying Da Studio will explore new ways of reinterpreting world classics through a Chinese perspective, with the classic comedy "The Government Inspector" among its efforts.

The Vakhtangov Theater will present "Amadeus" and "Pushkin Tales," while the Robert Wilson and Düsseldorfer Schauspielhaus will bring "Dorian" and "Moby Dick" to Shanghai audiences.

The Jingju Theater Company of Beijing will stage Peking Opera "Prime Minister Liu the Hunchback," which is based on the story of ancient Chinese politician and calligrapher Liu Yong.

Popular professional performance programs, including the Shanghai International Magic Festival, the Shanghai International Puppet Festival and the Shanghai JZ Festival, will also be featured, offering a diverse range of performances and cultural experiences.

Organizers noted that this year's festival will leverage its network in international exchange, collaboration and trade, and talent development, stimulate arts trade and expand the "Young Artists Support Initiative" to provide greater support for emerging talent.

For the first time, the festival will bring more than 80 high-quality performances into public spaces across the city, making art more accessible to the public. In addition, 6,500 discounted tickets will be available at an average of half the regular price – high-quality art within easier reach of people.