In a story about another Chinese tradition "Peony Pavilion", one of the most famous examples of Kunqu opera, has been performed at the Imperial Granary in downtown Beijing more than three-hundred times. Now the age-old piece is about to hit the stage at the Zhengyici Peking Opera Theater the oldest theatre of its kind in the capital. What will it be like when the 6-hundred year old art form meets the ancient theater with a history of over three centuries.

The Zhengyici Peking Opera Theater, located in Xuanwu District of Beijing, was built in 1688, during the reign of the Kangxi Emperor in the Qing Dynasty. The ancient theater has just undergone renovation, and now has a whole new look to welcome guests from near and far.

A newly tailored version of Kunqu Opera "Peony Pavilion" will be performed at the theater. Compared with the Imperial Granary, which only has around fifty seats, the Zhengyici Peking Opera Theater has over two-hundred seats to offer. And the stage design, complete with wings and corridors, adds an interactive atmosphere to the performance.

Wang Xiang, producer of the new version of "Peony Pavilion", says they plan to lower the ticket price of the show from its previous price of over one-thousand yuan to prices from 2-to-3-hundred yuan, in hopes to pull in more audience members from the younger generation.

(CCTV August 14, 2009)