Profound productions

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Antigone is an example of "pure drama", a concept that Li came up with to bring people back to the essence of drama in a time when more theatrical forms are being used.

Li's "pure drama" consists of not only the presentation of dramas in more original forms, but also the audiences' receiving.

"Through dramas, we are not imposing our ideas on the audiences, but to inspire them through theatrical clues," Li says. "If the audience sincerely feels something when watching a drama, no matter what it is, we have achieved our goal."

As a playwright, Li has published a collection of his own works, and he is working on another book of his theoretical essays on "pure drama".

Antigone is not only a new drama production, but also the opening of Li's grand project called "Made in China". Produced by Li Liuyi Studio, the project will present six works in the span of three years.

After Antigone, Li plans to direct two other dramas from ancient Greece, Oedipus the King and Prometheus Bound, and a trilogy based on the Tibetan epic King Gesar.

"As an ancient art form, the development of drama is accompanied by the process of people discovering the world and knowing themselves," Li says. "Under the circumstance of globalization, Chinese theater practitioners are obliged to express their attitude through this charming art form, which means to base it on Chinese traditional culture, to gain new strength by taking a broad view of the whole world, and to avoid the manipulation of commercialization."

Li decides to call his project "Made in China" because he sees the term as somewhat derogatory for products of low quality, and he wants to change its meaning by offering spiritual works from China.

"Ancient Greek dramas interpret the noble spirit of human beings, while King Gesar eulogizes unvarnished goodness and beauty of the world," Li says. "'Made in China' is the voice of drama, and the voice of human beings."

Li has invited some top Chinese artists to participate in the "Made in China" project, including composer Guo Wenjing, who will be music supervisor, artist Lin Tianmiao, who will be visual designer for Oedipus the King, and Hong Kong film director Stanley Kwan, who will be a consultant for the project.

For King Gesar, the longest epic in the world with more than 120 volumes and over 1 million lines, Li is researching the texts to write his own script. He also plans to invite a Tibetan epic singer to join the performance.

This year Li has premiered four new plays. Next year there will be at least another four, namely Oedipus the King, a Chekov play, a Western opera, and a Peking Opera about Confucius.

And between these productions, he will spend three months in Tibet, Qinghai and Sichuan to look for the best epic singer for King Gesar.

Contact the writer at muqian@chinadaily.com.cn.