Egyptian Audiences Shed Tears for China's "The Dream of the Red Chamber" |
The 75 artists have successfully presented a splendid dance production, "The Dream of the Red Chamber," in Egypt for 10 days. With assistance of Wu Promotion, the 75 artists from the Beijing Friendship Dance Company have successfully presented a splendid dance production, "The Dream of the Red Chamber," in Egypt for 10 days. Standing ovations and long-lasting warm applauses were the consistent response at the end of every single show, with audience members complimenting how breathtakingly luxuriant the Chinese stage production was. The Egypt tour consisted of two parts: the Cairo Opera House from the 5th to 8th of July and the Alexander Darwish Theatre from the 10th to 11th. As one of Egypt's most significant cultural institutions, the Cairo Opera House is the most prominent theatre of Egypt if not the entire Middle East. Plenty of internationally renowned art ensembles have performed on its stage. The ancient Alexander Darwish Theatre is frequently visited by Egyptian kings and heads of state. The crew encountered technical difficulties at both theatres. However, all were resolved with the cooperation of both parties. At the heart of the book is a Romeo and Juliet story among three dramas, which has been adapted and abridged into 90 minutes: the creators and choreographer use the poetic theme of Red Chamber and design every dance action to expose the "dreamlike" world of the main characters. The main characters in this story, Baoyu, Daiyu, Baochai, Wang Xifeng, Mother Jia, Jia Zheng and Grandma Liu, show the audience their fortune, emotion and feeling with professional dancing skills. Unique concepts, together with strong visuals, makes The Dream of the Red Chamber a wordless world between reality and fantasy. Special guests who attended the performance at the Cairo Opera House included the Chinese Ambassador to Egypt, Chunhua Wu, Party Secretary of the China Federation of Literature, Zhenmin Hu, and the Artistic Director of the Cairo Opera House, Dr. Abdel-Moneim Kamel. During intermission, Dr. Kamel couldn't help but come backstage to remark how unbelievably gorgeous the production was. Performances following the premiere went swimmingly. The dancers' perfected acts moved many audience members to tears. The city cable station even broadcasted the last performance live in order to fulfill local viewers' demands. Countless Chinese and Egyptian media and news bureaus, such as Xinhua News Agency, China Radio International, Egypt Satellite TV, "Ahram" and "Ta Kung Pao" newspapers reported the performances and press conferences throughout the tour. |