In March we introduced you to the "mother" of Chinese opera, Kunqu. This weekend Shanghai residents will have a chance to see if this ancient performing art can be transformed into something — how shall we put it — easier on the ears by blending in a touch of Jazz. Jeffrey Zhang, sometimes referred to as the "Prince of Kunqu Opera," will sing excerpts from classics such as "The Peony Pavilion," "The Story of the......

And now a diversion away from the earthquake news. After playing around with the actual performance date, the Asphodèles Theatre Company from Lyon, France, will perform a unique show this Thursday at Fuzhou Rd's Tianchan Yifu Theatre. Under the tag "Harlequin's trip to China," the show is part of the French and Chinese Cultural Festival called "Croisements." The play will blend the features of traditional Chinese opera with the characteristics of Italian commedia dell'arte (literally......

With a 600-year long history, Kunqu (崑曲) opera is one of the oldest extant forms of the Chinese opera and known as the "mother" of a hundred operas. Although dozens of professional Kunqu troupes used to operate across China, only a handful remain today in Beijing, Shanghai, Nanjing, Hangzhou, Chenzhou and Yongjia. Kunqu has been awarded the title of "Masterpieces of the Oral and Intangible Heritage of Humanity" by UNESCO, which also recognises that the......