Faust among equals

"My experience as a dancer allowed me to express and portray the role of the demon, who is cultivated, witty, and cynical, through lots of movement," he adds. Yin also notes that it was a very rewarding experience to work with Tuminas, who inspired him to act like never before.

After the rehearsals in Tel Aviv, the team also conducted more rehearsals via video conference.

"I am surprised by Wang Yanhui's performance, who has added a great sense of humor to the production. His humor allows the audience to better understand the story," Tuminas says of Wang's performance.

As for Yin, the director says: "He looks very young, which gives a freshness to Mephistopheles, who has lived for thousands of years. Yin fits the role, reminding the audience that he lives forever and never ages a day."

The director also says that theater is a place for people to think and he hopes that the play will inspire the audience to reflect, discuss and to think.

As the winner of the State Prize of the Russian Federation and of the National Prize of Lithuania, Tuminas has directed more than 20 plays in different theaters and countries.

Lei, who met the director when his productions of The Three Sisters and Madagascar were being staged in Beijing in 2016 and 2017. Soon, the two agreed to create a Chinese play.

Chinese audiences are familiar with the director, who first brought his work to China in 2016. The director's stage production of Eugene Onegin for the Vakhtangov Theatre toured the country in 2019.