What’s on
Laputa: Castle in the Sky
When: March 2, 7:30 pm Where: Shanghai Oriental Art
Center
The multimedia concert features songs from Studio Ghibli animated classics — including the eponymous Laputa: Castle in
the Sky, as well as Kiki’s Delivery Service, My Neighbor Totoro, Princess Mononoke and the Oscar-winning Spirited Away.
They were all created by composer Joe Hisaishi and director Hayao Miyazaki. Its charm and appeal ensures that fans of the Japanese animation studio won’t want to miss the offering performed by Music Fans Classical, a professional chamber orchestra founded in 2015.
Based on classical music and a wide range of instruments, the orchestra aims to create, interpret and rearrange classical and popular music to the adaptation of chamber music characteristics, breeding into modern-classical style.
Clown Show: TuYo
When: March 2-24, 10:30 am, 3:30 pm
Where: Nanshan Sports Center Theater, Shenzhen
TuYo, performed by Spain’s Theater Plus, depicts the relationship between two people from childhood through to their last tango.
The wordless show invites the audience to witness the characters’ love — their joys, their dreams, their problems and disappointments. The story begins when a girl and a boy meet. They share the first kiss of their lives, grow up, fall in love and marry. The question is: do they live happily ever after?
The show has been performed at festivals in countries such as Russia, Slovenia, Serbia and Bulgaria.
Color and Dance When: March 9-10, 7:30 pm Where: National Center for the Performing Arts, Beijing
China has 56 ethnic groups and each has its own unique history and culture. Most cultures are passed down from generation to generation through legends, song and dance. There is an indispensable culture genre that exists in the cultures of ethnic groups.
Poems will be recited during the show to highlight the beauty of dance. They are designed to express the poets’ emotions or imagination with their own unique rhythms. They can evoke vivid images to the audience.
This show is based on a series of poems from different ethnic groups, creating a perfect combination of melody, poem and dance that make the audience get lost in wild and fanciful thoughts.
Shoac Citizens’ Concert
When: Feb 16, 10 am Where: Shanghai Oriental Art
Center
Thorsten Mauder, a concert organist and winner of numerous competitions and various scholarships, studied with French musician Daniel Roth in Frankfurt, Halle and Paris. In addition to worldwide concerts and making several CDs, he is a regular lecturer in master classes in Germany and other countries.
Duan Aiai is an erhu solo artist with the Shanghai Chinese Orchestra and president of the
erhu committee of the Shanghai Musicians’ Association.
She began learning the twostringed fiddle at the age of 6. She has toured dozens of countries and regions, performing as a soloist with various orchestras. She has been the erhu soloist and lead performer in musical scores for films, television drama series and modern dance productions.
Duan is noted for her delicate and expressive style, which exudes a natural charm that touches the hearts of her audience.
The Family Heritage When: Feb 23-24, 7:30 pm Where: National Center for the Performing Arts, Beijing
The Family Heritage is adapted from a novel of the same name by Lian Jian, a writer from Qingdao, Shandong province. The play is directed by Wang Xiaoying, who was specially invited to take the helm by the National Theater of China.
Focusing on the lives of two families, the drama reveals the complicated emotions of three generations regarding family heritage, a sensitive topic in China. The story tackles current social issues and illustrates how modern families should retain filial love.
It reveals social attitudes toward family fortunes and dissects family ties, plus filial and social responsibilities. When one of the fathers leaves a fortune in his will, the characters experience different reactions. Does heritage mean anything except money? Is it meaningful to inherit a fortune if the family spirit, which has been handed down from generation to generation, is missing?
A Dream of Red Mansions When: March 1-2, 7:30 pm Where: National Center for the Performing Arts, Beijing
It’s based on Chinese classic novel A Dream of Red Mansions by Cao Xueqin from the Qing Dynasty (1644-1911).
There are about 30 main characters and 400 minor ones in the novel. It describes the Jia clan’s wealth and influence and their fall from the height of their prestige, and their mansions are raided and confiscated.
Jia Yuanchun, one of the clan’s offspring, is chosen as an imperial concubine, and a lush landscaped garden is built to welcome her visit.
The carefree male heir of the family, Jia Baoyu was born with a magical piece of “jade” in his mouth. He shares his love of music and poetry with his sickly cousin Lin Daiyu, but he’s betrothed to marry another cousin Xue Baochai.
He experiences a bittersweet life and finally understands that life is nothing more than a long dream.