CRI听力:Shakespeare's 450th Birthday

Today marks 450th anniversary of the birth of British bard William Shakespeare.

To commemorate the anniversary, the National Center for Performing Arts in Beijing will be hosting an array of Shakespearean plays to honor the English playwright.

CRI's Sam Duckett has more.

This year, to celebrate the 450th anniversary of Shakespeare's birth, The Grand National Theatre of Performing Arts in Beijing will be hosting a production of Dunsinane, a contemporary play that tells the tale of events just after the original Macbeth story, with a couple of twists thrown in.

Dunsinane is a co-production of the Royal Theatre of Scotland and the Royal Shakespeare Company. The play is set just after the death of Macbeth. An English army has swept through the landscape, killed the tyrant and taken the seat of power. Attempting to restore peace and put in place a new ruler, Siward, the commanding officer, is beset by a brutal guerrilla uprising. Increasingly isolated from his own men and Scottish allies alike, his efforts to restore order appear futile as the situation spins out of control.

Professional Chinese actor Yu Eentai is the official promoter for the production.

"Hello Everyone I am Yu Wentai, I am very happy to be promoting the 450th Shakespeare birthday celebration performances. TV and Movies sometimes leave me feeling distance from the theatre stage, but I think every actor has a passion for live theater. My understanding of the stage comes from Shakespeare. The style of this performance is totally original. Shakespeare represents eternal spirit and I hope everyone has a chance to come down and check out the performance."

Project director of the China Grand National Theatre of Performing Arts, Wen Tianyi talked with me about the production that will be taking place on Shakespeare's birthday.

Shakespeare's birthday has been an annual celebration in his home town of Stratford-upon-Avon since the 1650s. To celebrate Shakespeare's 450th birthday their will be a full weekend of entertainment, in his home city, which is sure to be unforgettable.

China also enjoys paying tribute to the classic Elizabethan writer during his birthday. The Grand National Theatre of Performing Arts has a profound respect for Shakespeare and has celebrated his birthday without fail for the past six years.

Wen Tianyi discussed with me some of the past birthday celebrations thrown in William Shakespeare's honor.

"During the 6 year history of the Grand National theatre we have host special productions every year for Shakespeare. During 2011, Oscar winning actor Kevin Spacey led an all English production of Richard IIIX. During 2012 we also had an English production of Henry the XV and the winter story. The name of the troupe that performed these two pieces was called propeller, they were an all male performance troupe. They gave a completely new perspective on both of these plays that left a strong impression on the audience. "

Shakespeare has had a huge impact on China, his works has allowed for foreign performance troupes from all over the world to travel to China and perform. His plays have also not only been performed by domestic Chinese troupes in mandarin, certain performing arts companies have also performed his work in Ethnic dialects.

That is CRI's Sam Duckett reporting