Making a play on the past

Immersive musical helps revive historical opera theater's fortunes, Cheng Yuezhu reports.

Following its inscription as a national key cultural relics protection unit in 2019 and subsequent restoration, the Beijing Huguang Guild Hall reopened to the public at the beginning of last year.

Originally a private Ming Dynasty (1368-1644) residence, the complex was refurbished and expanded during the Qing Dynasty (1644-1911) as a gathering place for people from Huguang, which refers to today's Hunan and Hubei provinces, and a traditional Chinese opera house was added in the 19th century.

This operatic legacy continues today. The site now hosts the Beijing Museum of Traditional Opera, and since 2024, an immersive musical inspired by the venue's history.

After its first run from Dec 24 to Jan 25, the musical, Till We Meet Again, greeted audiences on April 30 with a second run. Four performances have been held each week during this run, which ends on Sunday.

The storyline is set around a century ago and follows the journey of a Peking Opera troupe that becomes involved in a murder mystery. Its head is arrested as a suspect, plunging the troupe into crisis. Jin Sheng, the troupe's lead actor, takes on the responsibility of proving their leader's innocence and reviving the troupe.

The audience is seated directly in front of the stage, just like the spectators in the story itself. They sit around square wooden tables with matching chairs. Each table has tea and refreshments, re-creating the classic setup of an old opera house.

The musical was initiated by the Beijing Federation of Literary and Art Circles and coproduced by multiple organizations, including the Jingju Theater Company of Beijing and the Beijing Quju Opera Troupe. Many of the actors have backgrounds in traditional Chinese opera.