Art beat ... finger on the pulse

Beijing

UK film showcase

Acclaimed director and screenwriter Terence Davies will open British Film Week in Beijing by presenting his latest film, The Deep Blue Sea. The program will bring seven films produced or restored between 2010 and 2012, including The Deep Blue Sea, a destructive love affair across classes, starring Tom Hiddleston and Rachel Weisz; Submarine, an archetypal, coming-of-age British indie film; Wuthering Heights, an innovative re-telling of the English classic; acclaimed documentary Senna, created in memory of the great Brazilian racing-car driver Ayrton Senna; and Dreams of a Life, a true-life exploration of loneliness and anonymity in the big city.

7:30 pm, Dec 5-7, Dec 10-14; 2 pm on Dec 8-9, Dec 15-16; 6 pm on Dec 8; 4 pm on Dec 15. Cinema Complex MOMA Broadway Cinematheque, Beijing. 010-8438-8257/58, ext 8001.

Sing for beloved Zhou

Soprano Han Zhiping will perform with the Chinese PLA Military Orchestra in a concert to review her 40-year singing career. The 60-year-old soprano, who rose to fame with the song Sing For Beloved Premier Zhou Enlai in 1976, will feature her classics as well as popular folk songs from other countries.

7:30 pm, Dec 7. Great Hall of the People, West of Tian'anmen Square, Beijing. 400-818-3333.

Canadian jazz

Pianist David Braid returns to Beijing for a night of jazz. Besides performing some of his classic works, he will also deliver a jazz rendition of the Chinese folk song Moonlit River in Spring. The Canadian has performed all over the world and has teamed up with Chinese musicians and performed with guzheng (Chinese zither) virtuoso Chang Jing and pianist Bai Tian. This concert marks his third visit to Beijing since 2008.

7:30 pm, Dec 6. Forbidden City Concert Hall, inside Zhongshan Park, Chang'an West Avenue, Xicheng district, Beijing. 010-6559-8285/8306.

Shanghai

Magical realism onstage

The play Glory Days has been adapted from the namesake novel by Han Han and its story of magical realism. A group of friends move to a faraway town teaching in the local school. They are about to realize their small version of Utopia, when they feel the threat of "Glory Days". Playwright Yu Rongjun borrowed lots of ideas and quotes from Han's essays to make the play sharp and satirical.

7:30 pm, Nov 23-Dec 1. Shanghai Art Theater, 466 Jiangning Road, Shanghai. 021-6256-8282.

King Lear with rhythm

TNT, a theater company from Britain, will present Shakespeare's classic tragedy King Lear. The production directed by Paul Stebbings features live music composed by Thomas Johnson. TNT was founded in 1980, and is one of the most widely toured theater groups in Britain. The company aims to make Shakespeare classics accessible to modern audiences. The live music has been a special highlight of its productions.

7:30 pm, Dec 7-8. Lyceum Theater, 57 Maoming Road South Shanghai. 021-6216-8530.

Art of the fundamental

Chinese paintings by Tian Liming are on exhibition. The artist depicted his childhood memories of growing up in the countryside, his perception of modern metropolitan life, as well as the love for clear water, clean air and simple interactions between people.

9 am-5 pm, through Dec 4. Shanghai Art Museum, 325 Nanjing Road West, Shanghai. 021-6327-2829.

Maksim Mrvica

The Croatian pianist was born in 1975 and plays classical crossover music. He has won international prizes such as the Nikolai Rubinstein and the Pontoise piano competitions before his first CD made record-breaking sales in Croatia. Mrvica has toured China extensively in the past few years. His adaptations of movie music and beloved classic pieces have won high acclaim among fans in China.

7:30 pm, Dec 2. Shanghai Grand Stage, 1111 Caoxi Bei Lu, Shanghai. 021-6217-2426.

Guangzhou

Li embraces Beethoven

Chinese pianist Li Yundi has been connected with Chopin since he became the youngest winner of the International Frederic Chopin Piano Competition in Warsaw, Poland, in 2000, at the age of 18. But Beethoven's works replace Chopin's to become the main melodies of Li's latest album, which debuted in Asia in September, and of Li's coming recital in Guangzhou. After two poetic nocturnes of Chopin, Li will perform three of his favorite sonatas of Beethoven, Pathetique, Moonlight and Appassionata, at the recital. Before the Guangzhou performance, Li will give a recital in Beijing on Dec 1.

7:30 pm, Dec 1. National Center for the Performing Arts, No 2 West Chang'an Avenue, Xicheng district, Beijing. 010-6655-0000.

8 pm, Dec 15. Opera Hall, Guangzhou Opera House, Exit B1 of Zhujiang New Town subway station, Guangzhou. 020-3839-2888.

Mandarin Cats

Having crawled from the West End in London to Guangzhou Opera House in China, the Jellicles, a tribe of cats, are playing with new toys they can only find in a junk yard in the city, such as a dim-sum steamer and dancing lion costume. The Jellicles will host their world-famous midnight party, which decides which member will ascend to the Heaviside Layer in the junk yard, on the stage of Guangzhou Opera House. Making its debut in 1981, Cats is the second longest-running show in Broadway history. Cats has been translated into more than 20 languages and the Chinese version hit the stage in Shanghai this August.

8 pm, daily except for Mondays until Dec 14. One more show at 3 pm during weekends. Opera Hall, Guangzhou Opera House, Exit B1 of Zhujiang New Town subway station, Guangzhou. 020-3839-2888.

Quick pick

In step with Ukraine

As Kiev celebrates 20 years of diplomatic relations with China, the Virsky Ukrainian State Folk Dance Ensemble will present a dance performance featuring the Ukrainian tradition in Beijing. Established in 1937 by famed dance artist Pavel Virsky, the ensemble collects, researches and preserves Ukrainian traditions and customs, as well as creating works featuring the past and current lives of Ukrainian people. In 1959, the ensemble was awarded the Diploma of the World Peace Council.

7:30 pm, Dec 14, 15. Poly Theater, Poly Plaza, 14 Dongzhimen Nandajie, Dongcheng district, Beijing. 010-6551-3348.

- Chen Nan

China Daily