THE Qingdao Grand Theater has attracted an increasing number of music enthusiasts since Beijing Poly Theater Management Company took over its operation last October.

Poly organized several symphony concerts at the end of last year which became a hit in Qingdao’s performance market.

Tickets to the concert presented by the American Philharmonic Orchestra were sold out a week before the show.

And concerts given by the Berlin Symphony Orchestra and the Moscow State Symphony Orchestra also attracted a large number of classical music lovers.

The repertoire which consists of many classics of the canon and the high-quality musicianship on show is key to the box-office success, said Wang Haixiang, general manager of Qingdao Poly Theater Management Company.

Performances such as the Russia classic ballet “Swan Lake” and the play “Four Generations Under One Roof” presented by the National Theater of China appealed to family audiences in Qingdao.

Wang said the attendance rate of the shows at the theater was more than 80 percent and they planned to organize 200 commercial performances this year.

The China National Symphony Orchestra will perform the “Chorus of the Yellow River” in June.

Classic ballet “Red Detachment of Women” in June and Beijing opera “The Legend of the Red Lantern” in July will be a bonus to elderly music lovers.

Wang said his company is also promoting proper etiquette among audiences through strict management.

(Chen Ting, Li Wei)