24 October 2017
After a long flight of 33 hours, the crew of the newly adapted drama “Juliet’s Revival” comprising personnel from mainly the Directing Department and other eight departments/offices of the Shanghai Theatre Academy (STA) arrived smoothly in Medellin, the second largest city of Colombia in South America, before dawn on 17 October. The first performance of the tour will be held at the prestigious Eafit University in Medellin.
On this occasion, the performance group of STA has been sent by Confucius Institute Headquarters (Hanban) of China and invited by the Organizing Committee of the Cali Theatre Festival to give tour performances in Medellín, Cali and Bogota, the capital of Colombia. In addition to being invited to give two performances at the Cali Theatre Festival, it will also give one performance each at the Eafit University in Medellin and at the University of the Andes and the University of Jorge Tadeo Lozano in Bogota, the capital of Colombia. During the period, the performance group will also be invited to hold several Chinese traditional theatre workshops at Eafit University, Cali Theatre Festival and some other universities, as well as the themed exhibition entitled “Chinese Dramatist Tang Xianzu and His Work ‘The Peony Pavilion’ on the International Stage”.
On the morning of 18 October, the Chinese traditional opera workshop was held in the rehearsal hall of the Music Department of the Eafit University as scheduled. From the performance group, the two teachers, Xu Jiali and Yu Xiang, gave the presentation and explanation, while the two students, Chen Xing and Li Zhengkuan, gave the live demonstration, which won the heartfelt admiration of the teachers and students of the University attending the workshop. Mr Pablo Echavarria, foreign director of the Confucius Institute at Medellin and former Colombian ambassador to China, also participated in the workshop. The workshop has enabled the teachers and students of the University to have a direct exposure and personal experience of the broadness, profoundness, vividness and delicateness of the Chinese traditional opera.
(Mr Pablo Echavarria receiving souvenir presented by STA)
The performance on the evening of 18 October opened in the eager anticipation of the audience. Because of the thoughtful and detailed preparation and extensive publicity and introduction carried out in advance by the Confucius Institute at Medellin, the audience came with a keen curiosity about this theatrical production “Juliet’s Revival” from China, a modern country with a long ancient history. That was why many audiences had come to the theatre early before the performance started. Mr Pablo Echavarria also came early, and went to the backstage where he held warm and cordial conversations with members of the cast. He told us that he had been to China 15 times including three visits to Xi’an and five visits to Shanghai and that he is passionate about this ancient and mysterious land in the East and has a heartfelt love for the Chinese culture and art.
Before the first performance started, the Eafit University Theatre, which can sit more than 600 people, was packed. The enthusiastic audiences spoke highly about the exhibition of "Chinese Dramatist Tang Xianzu and His ‘The Peony Pavilion’ on the International Stage” displayed in the front foyer of the theatre, commending that the exhibition was rich in content, well crafted and full of Chinese characteristics.
(stage photo)
The performance of the evening was warmly welcomed by the audience. The wonderful performance of the actors won the audience's warm applause time and again. The gorgeous costumes, the vivid, tortuous and touching storyline, and the very exotic performance have all left a deep impression on the hospitable Colombian audience.
(stage photo)
After the performance, the enthusiastic audience rushed onto the stage, taking pictures with the actors, cordially exchanging their feelings of watching the performance and expressing their excitement to Chinese artists from the ancient Orient. The one sentence said the most by the audience was that “it is so beautiful, so incredible and touching!” Mr Pablo Echavarria was excited too. He said to the key members of the cast: “You have created a wonderful story in which I can see the continuation of the spirit of Shakespeare’s drama and the fates of the characters, as well as the perfect presentation of the theme of love with universal value and meaning. But, the way you used to tell the story is purely oriental. You have made me an unforgettable and wonderful night.”
The performance was over, but the wonderful and excited mood continued to reverberate on the beautiful campus of the Eafit University for a long time.
