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July 29, 2016

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Children’s theater struggles to come of age

IT’S that time of the year again when Ye Xiaoming struggles to find interesting activities to occupy her 10-year-old daughter during summer school holidays.

“She likes children’s plays, but there aren’t really many choices for children of her age,” says Ye.

Like many parents, Ye is not happy to see her daughter wile away the two-month summer break watching television or playing video games at home. She is looking for creative, cultural experiences.

The 35-year-old mother finally took the daughter to the Shanghai Children’s Art Theater for a multimedia modern circus performance entitled “Traces,” presented by a Canadian troupe.

“The show was very good,” says Ye, after the 90-minute matinee performance. “Both my daughter and I enjoyed it very much. A good children’s play should not be brainless. It should be inspiring and thought-provoking. I believe more intelligent and attractive content is needed beyond just singing and dancing shows.”

Next up, Ye will take her daughter to see a children’s drama called “The Blue Horse,” to be staged at Theater Above from August 3.

The drama is a bedtime story adapted by Taiwan playwright and theater director Stan Lai. He says it was a favorite tale of his two daughters.

It’s Lai’s first children’s play, after his success with adult works like “Secret Love in Peach Blossom Land,” “A Dream Like a Dream” and “Crosstalk Travelers.”

The story of “The Blue Horse” follows the adventures of a little girl named Vivi and a wounded, winged horse she adopts. Vivi has a special talent for the piano but resists her mother’s attempts to push her toward a career as a concert pianist.

Vivi’s dream is to write her own songs. One day, a wounded horse with wings appears outside her window, and Vivi starts taking care of the animal behind her mother’s back, healing its wounds with her music.

“There are people who think it’s very easy to write and direct a children’s play, but they seriously underestimate the intelligence of children,” Lai says.

Although audiences above the age of three are welcome to watch the play, its main target audiences are older children and teenagers, according to Lai.

“From fifth-grade to the early years of middle school, children in this age group start to think more independently and want their voices heard,” Lai says. “However, this group is seriously ignored in China’s market for children’s plays.”

That may be slowly changing as theatrical entrepreneurs begin to appreciate the potential of the market.

The Shanghai Children’s Art Theater stages about 40 plays a year, many of them brought in from overseas, in various theatrical forms including musicals, orchestral works, documentaries, and other cross-over shows.

“Our theater is the first on the mainland to group shows according to different ages of child audiences,” claims Christine Liang, general manager of the theater.

However, she does admit that it mostly targets audiences 10 years and younger.

In addition to “Traces,” the theater’s summer holiday programs include the Canadian puppet show “Star Keeper” and the multimedia concert “Magic Piano and Chopin Shorts.” Both are geared for children five and above.

Although Liang notes that teenagers are a very important audience group, she says the industry doesn’t cater to them very much because their summers are usually filled with academic studies so that they have little time for entertainment. “Teenagers will grow into the theater audiences of the future, and we hope to introduce them to the performing arts when they are still children,” director Lai says.

Lai will produce his first children’s play in tandem with his daughter Celeste. “The Blue Horse” will be presented with elements of favorite puppetry, and Lai himself created three songs for the show.

“I was so impressed when Vivi pinched some milk from the kitchen to help her little friend outside the window, without anyone else at home finding out,” says Celeste Lai. “Every child has little secrets in childhood. A good children’s play can influence their whole lives.”

Shanghai Children’s Art Theater General Manager Liang admits that children’s plays need to be more intelligent, honest and sincere because youngsters are very discerning where emotions are concerned.

“People involved in children’s plays need to love children and love the theater,” she says. “That is the bottom line for making these activities successful.”

The primary gap between quality international children’s plays and domestic works is one of heart, she says.

“Besides technology and creative ideas, you have to imbue a work with your own feelings and soul,” she says. “The old-style plays in China that tell out-of-date stories and lack of imagination will hardly attract today’s children and parents.”

The Children’s Art Theater is planning to produce its own children’s plays, according to the general manager. By introducing good shows from abroad, the theater hopes to help the domestic industry learn and improve.

“We want to provide a platform for domestic producers so they can turn out truly quality children’s shows in the future,” she says. “But that will take time. We are going forward step by step.”

 

“The Blue Horse”

Date: August 3-28, 2:30pm, 7:30pm

Venue: Theater Above, 5/F, 1111 Zhaojiabang Rd

Tickets: 100-280 yuan




 

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