What's on across China
Rimi Natsukawa's concert
When: April 23, 7:30 pm
Where: Majestic Theater, Shanghai
Japanese singer Rimi Natsukawa is best known for her 2001 single Nada SouSou. It made the Top 10 in Japan's DAM Karaoke chart for songs released from 1994 to 2018. The song has been covered by singers from South Korea and the United States.
Natsukawa's exquisite interpretations of classics such as singer Teresa Teng's Japanese chart-topping hit Toki No Nagare Ni Mi O Makase, or Give Yourself to the Flow of Time, have won high praise from critics and musicians alike.
Natsukawa has always enjoyed singing and was determined to be a performer since her childhood.
She made her debut in 1989 as a singer under the name Misato Hoshi, and she released three singles in three years, although she did not find immediate success.
170 Days in Nanking
When: April 24, 7 pm
Where: National Center for the Performing Arts, Beijing
The opera commission 170 Days in Nanking was first performed in December 2016. Coproduced by Jiangsu Cultural Investment and the Jiangsu Performing Arts Group and presented by the Jiangsu Center for the Performing Arts, 170 Days in Nanking gives a concrete manifestation of the Chinese story and international expression in the form of opera.
The production team is made up of artists from 16 countries and regions.
The composer Tang Jianping commented: "I hope that the audience will be touched by the brilliance of humanity from this opera instead of the horror of killing." The review and commemoration of history helps the world understand the horror of conflict.
The Dreamer
When: April 26-28, 7:30 pm
Where: Shanghai International Dance Center Grand Theater
It's an original story inspired by the dreams of England's William Shakespeare and Chinese playwright Tang Xianzu. Inspirations come from Shakespeare's A Midsummer Night's Dream and Tang's The Peony Pavilion, both of which are related to dreams.
Director Rich Rusk and devising performer Chris Evans blend driven movement, a spine-tingling soundscape and striking visual storytelling to bring a new twist to these classic texts.
Performed by a Chinese cast, the dance drama features design by Rhys Jarman, lighting design by Chris Swain and original music by Dave Price.
Top Restaurant
When: April 25-28, 7:30 pm
Where: National Center for the Performing Arts, Beijing
Produced by Beijing People's Art Theater, the drama tells of the vicissitudes of the timehonored Peking duck restaurant Fujude in Beijing.
In the early 20th century, Fujude's manager is forced to retire because of illness. He hands over the restaurant to his two sons.
However, the young men are not interested in the family business. While the older son is obsessed with Peking Opera, the younger one likes martial arts.
As the two cannot cover their expenses from the restaurant's income, the vice-manager Wang Zixi recommends his best friend, Lu Mengshi, to manage the business.
With help from his lover Yuchu, chef Luo Datou and head waiter Chang Gui, Lu manages to revive Fujude's popularity. A decade later, the two brothers, jealous of the restaurant's success, want to drive Lu away.
Zero Liturgy
When: April 26-28, 7:30 pm
Where: Daning Theater, Shanghai
In his ambitious production Zero Liturgy, Valery Fokin adapts one of Fyodor Dostoevsky's best-known and autobiographically inspired novellas, The Gambler.
While the Russian novelist's work is about a fatal passion for roulette, Fokin's work presents an addiction arising from the logic of an artist's existence-an addiction capable of crushing a person's identity and soul.
The spectacular performance features music by the outstanding contemporary composer Alexander Baksi.
Founded in 1756, the Alexandrinsky Theater is one of the oldest national theaters in Russia, and Fokin serves as its artistic director.
Mi Carmen Flamenco
When: April 29-May 1, 7:30 pm
Where: Shanghai International Dance Center
Antonio Andrade and his flamenco company adapt the theme of the opera Carmen with a new flamenco spirit.
Choreographer Manolo Marin put this production together for the ballet.
Arabic elements, jazz and salsa are introduced with the ardor of pure flamenco.
The company has performed its version of Carmen at many prestigious theaters all over the world since its debut in 1998 at the Deutsche Oper Berlin.
A dozen flamenco dancers take the legendary Carmen from the opera stage back to its Spanish roots.
The Railway to Tibet
When: May 1-11, 7:30 pm
Where: National Center for the Performing Arts, Beijing
The story, told in dance, dates to 2007, when the Qinghai-Tibet Railway was under construction.
The railway, which is 1,956 kilometers long, is the world's highest line, and the longest built on a single plateau.
At its highest point, it is 5,072 meters above sea level.
The railway, which connects Tibet with the rest of world, links Xining-capital of Qinghai province-with Lhasa, capital of the Tibet autonomous region. The railway's construction was a key project in China's 40 years of reform and opening-up.
