Beijing's oval-shaped National Grand Theater is scheduled to run
its first trial performance from September 25 through October 13,
2007. The dates celebrate the 58th birthday of the People's
Republic of China and the opening of the upcoming 17th National
Congress of the Communist Party of China scheduled for October
15.
A night photo of the
National Grand Theater
Deng Yijiang, press officer of the theater, said that 23
performances of seven shows will be staged during the trial period,
including The Red Detachment of Women and Swan
Lake by the National Ballet of China, Sister Jiang by
the Shanghai Opera House, Dream of Grand Dunhuang by the
Lanzhou Song and Dance Company, Tea House by the Beijing
People's Art Theater, Mei Lanfang by the Beijing Peking
Opera Company and the eminent The Peony Pavilion by the
Imperial Granary, a Beijing-based theatrical company.
The trial performances will be held primarily inside the opera
house, with the concert hall and theater to formally open by the
year's end.
The purpose of the trial is to test equipment. The trial
performances will not be open to the public. Deputies of the 17th
National Congress of the Communist Party of China, designers and
builders of the theater and Beijing Olympic Games venues and the
original dwellers who moved out from the sites will be the first to
witness these trial performances at the Opera House.
Theater and dance enthusiasts, as well as opera buffs can hope
for a formal show by the end of this year. Some 183 shows from
China, the United States, Russia, France, Italy and other countries
will be staged during the premiere season until the end of March,
said Deng.
?
After five years of construction, the enclosures around the
National Grand Theater were removed on June 15, 2007.
Designed by the renowned French architect Paul Andreu, the
theater is located near Beijing's famous Tiananmen Square and the
Forbidden City. Undoubtedly it will become an important landmark in
the capital.
This photo was shot on
September 17 and shows the Opera House inside the National Grand
Theater. The 2,398-seat opera house, the most magnificent hall in
the Grand Theater, is designated mainly for operas, ballets, and
dance dramas.?
?
Another September 17 photo
illustrates the Concert Hall of the National Grand Theater. The
2,019-seat concert hall will be used primarily for symphony, ethnic
music, and choral concert performances.?
Taken also on September 17,
this photo portrays the Theater inside the National Grand Theater.
The 1,035-seat theater is designed mainly for plays, Chinese
operas, folk song and dance programs.
(China Daily and China.org.cn September 18, 2007)
