NCPA's stage play reimagines Beijing's transformative era

Zhongdu of the Jin Dynasty, a Chinese play by the National Centre for the Performing Arts, premiered in Beijing on Saturday and will run till Dec 22.

This historical drama explores a pivotal moment in Beijing's past — the city's emergence as the national capital when the Jin Dynasty (1115-1234) relocated its capital to present-day Beijing in 1153, renaming it Zhongdu (central capital). It marked the first time in Chinese history that Beijing had served as the capital of a dynasty.

Written by acclaimed author Xiong Zhaozheng, whose Zhang Juzheng (a four-volume novel) won the Mao Dun Literature Prize in 2005, Zhongdu of the Jin Dynasty vividly reimagines this transformative era onstage.

Directed by Wang Rui, the play features a star cast. Veteran actress Sarina portrays the elderly empress Wu Lu, a key figure who strongly opposed the relocation of the capital. Actor Zu Yongchen takes on the role of Wanyan Liang.

The play is first installment of an ambitious trilogy by the NCPA that delves deep into the city's transformation from a frontier settlement to the capital of a dynasty.