Best bets

[Photo provided to China Daily]

Suzhou Kunqu Opera Theater The Peony Pavilion

Date: Dec 7-9 - 7:30 pm

Venue: National Center for the Performing Arts

Price: 100-500 yuan

400 years ago, Tang Xianzu composed The Peony Pavilion, which has become a favored cultural treasure in the world and a romantic masterpiece in China's history of drama. The love story between Du Liniang and Liu Mengmei, who are parted in life and separated by death as is depicted in the masterpiece, reveals how feudality oppresses human nature and proclaims the glory of human nature that stands for the liberation of personality. The drama is well-known for its beautiful wording and interesting spoken parts. In 2001, UNESCO declared Kunqu Opera as an "oral and intangible cultural heritage of humanity", when Kunqu Opera art was, however, on the edge of extinction in China.

[Photo provided to China Daily]

Theater Movement Bazaar Track 3

Date: Dec 1-3 - 2:30 pm/7:30 pm

Venue: National Center for the Performing Arts

Price: 60-320 yuan

Track 3 is an award-winning theatrical work that dramatically derails the Anton Chekhov classic, Three Sisters, from its Victorian origins with exhilarating movement, dance, song and humor. It is a joyful remix of Chekhov's play for a new generation. Theater Movement Bazaar began in 1997 as a collaboration between choreographer/director/performer Tina Kronis, and mechanical engineer/writer/filmmaker, Richard Alger. They are the principle artists behind the award winning company and co-creators of Track 3. The company is dedicated to creating original performance works with an emphasis on physical action, and Track 3 is a continuation of their unique approach to deconstructing literary classics.