SHENZHEN-PRODUCED live theater shows are ready for national recognition. The city’s drama circle, after decades of growth and improvement, is ready for a bigger stage, said Sun Qinghe, a well-known theater director in Shenzhen.

    Sun made the statement at a forum for the city’s theater development held recently at OCT-LOFT, Nanshan District. The forum gathered experts, critics, performers, directors and producers from the city’s drama circle to discuss the future development of the industry.

    “Shenzhen’s drama circle is only 35 years old, and it is difficult to compete with older cultural regions such as Beijing, Shanghai, Sichuan and Shandong,” Sun said. “However, after decades of development, young Shenzhen actors are more mature, and they are ready to burst out of their cocoons.”

    In fact, Shenzhen drama circle members have already been making inroads on the national scene. In 2015, the Shenzhen-produced play “Mr. Zhuang” gave 39 performances across the country, which is the most for any play created in Shenzhen. Moreover, a growing number of Shenzhen-produced plays have won national awards in recent years.

    “Shenzhen audiences have a growing demand for local plays,” Sun said.

    “‘Ode to Humanity,’ a locally produced symphony dedicated to the Chinese Dream and world peace, has been staged around the world. If we can create such a great symphony in Shenzhen, we can also create other great plays in Shenzhen,” said Leng Bingbing, vice chairperson of the city’s association for art and literary circles. “I have a dream that one day I will take an excellent Shenzhen-produced play to the Edinburgh Festival Fringe, even just a small play with very few actors, so the world can hear the voice of Shenzhen.”

    However, the experts agreed that there were still some issues with the development of Shenzhen live theater.

    “A key issue is the lack of advanced business operations,” said Liu Xingfan, head of the Shenzhen Mass Art Center. “A lot of great productions have been suspended due to lack of operation and promotion. I hope the productions will be given more support in the future so that young Shenzhen artists can achieve their dreams.” (Wang Yuanyuan)