Opera all-stars visit Taipei

For scenes of flirtation, Chiang Qihu (江其虎) will play against Guan Bo (管波) in The Feast (小宴).

Peking opera is particularly well-known for its fighting scenes, and CPOT has brought in famous acrobatic performers such as Xi Zhonglu (奚中路) and Lee Jingwen (李靜文) from the Shanghai Peking Opera House (上海京劇院) and the Shengyang Peking Opera House (瀋陽京劇院). Xi, who specializes in the wusheng (武生) role, will display his acrobatic skills in Tielung Mountain (鐵籠山), which will be performed on Sunday night. Lee, who is an wudan (武旦), the female equivalent of the wusheng, will show off outstanding martial arts skills in the opera Stealing Precious Herbs (盜仙草) on Tuesday.

"Cultural barriers are not a big issue for us," said Liu Xiaohua. "From the voices of the actors, the handcrafted costumes and stage properties, as well as the intricate gestures and music, it is not difficult to appreciate the aesthetics of 200 year-old Peking Opera. The historical background of the dramas are not the main thing," he added.

"From our experience performing in the US and Europe, we have found that Western audiences have been able to grasp many of the basic cultural elements of this traditional Chinese drama. They are not only there to see acrobatic or kungfu scenes," Liu added.

All shows will have Chinese subtitles.

Performance Notes:

What: China Peking Opera Theater 2001 Joint Performance (中國京劇院2001訪台大匯演)

When: June 13 to 20, 7:30pm June 16 and 17, 2:30pm

Where: Dr Sun Yat-sen Memorial Hall (國父紀念館), 505, Jenai Rd. Sec. 4, Taipei (台北市仁愛路四段 505號)

Tickets: NT$600, NT$900, NT$1,200, NT$1,500, NT$1,800. ERA ticketing or tal: 2771-5676