China Peking Opera Theatre was set up in 1955. Its first president was Master Mei Lanfang and the present one is Wu Jiang, a famous playwright. Since its founding, attracting a galaxy of performing artists, well-known opera actors and actresses, noted playwrights, directors, composers and stage artists of various schools, the Theatre has become one of the first-class and most successful affiliated artistic groups to the Ministry of Culture. In the past years, adopting the policy of 搇et 100 flowers blossom and 100 schools of thought contend? the Theatre has created a repertoire of theatrical pieces in various forms and styles. All pieces share the same feature that is creative, attracting and widely accepted.
　
The Theatre also takes on the task of external cultural exchanges. Since the foundation of the P.R. China, it has continuously sent teams to give performances in over 50 countries and regions such as Hungary, Czech, Japan, India, Germany, France, Switzerland, Italy, UK, Finland, Chile, Brazil, Argentina, Egypt, Australia, US, Hong Kong, Macao and Taiwan, contributing greatly to the friendship among peoples.


White Snake----Stealing the Magic Herb
Stealing the Magic Herb draws the material from an old fairy tale 揥hite Snake? Admiring the worldly life, two snakes turned into beautiful ladies by the names of Bai Suzhen and Xiao Qing, after practicing asceticism for 1,000 years in the E抦ei Mountain. They were caught in a heavy rain by the West Lake, but luckily met a young man named Xu Xian, who borrowed them his umbrella and took the same boat. Xu and Bai fell in love with each other and soon got married. But the couple was persecuted a great deal by Monk Fa Hai, who envied their love and happiness. Xu believed Fa Hai抯 words, and got Bai drunk on the Dragon Boat Festival. He was scared dead by Bai who turned back to a snake. After Bai woke up and realized what happened, she risked her life to steal back the glossy ganoderma to save Xu抯 life.

CAST
Roles                                                                             Players
Bai Suzhen                                                                   Huang Hua
Guardians                                                                     Chen Zhongjian, etc.
Young Deer                                                                  Li Yang ming
Young Crane                                                                Su Guangzhong

Drum Control: Sun Liang
Suona players: Gao Xia and Cui Yukun

The King of Chu Bids Farewell to His Favorite Lady
In the late Qin Dynasty, two rising forces led by Xiang Yu and Liu Bang respectively struggled for hegemony. Xiang later fell into the ambush laid by Liu at Gaixia. Xiang was afraid not able to break through the encirclement and bid farewells to his beloved Yu Ji. Yu Ji committed suicide by cutting her throat. Xiang finally succeeded to beak through, but got lost by the Wujiang River. He felt so ashamed of himself and suicided by the river.

CAST
Roles                                                                              Players
Yu Ji                                                                                 Li Shengsu
Xiang Yu                                                                          Sun Gui yuan
Boy Groom                                                                       Ma Jianhua
Eunuch                                                                              Tuo Zhiguo
Femail Soldiers                                                                Huang Hua, etc.
Four armored men                                                            Yu Zuojing, etc.
Soldiers                                                                             Chen Guosen, etc.


Drum Control: Su Guang zhong
Chief instrumentalist: Li Yiping


Ye Zhu Lin
Drawing its material from the famous literary masterpiece Outlaws of the Marsh, the story is about Lin Chong, a chief military instructor of the late Northern Song Dynasty. Lin was framed up by the Gao抯 family due to his beautiful wife and sent into exile to Cangzhou. On the way the escorting guards were bought over to kill Lin at Ye Zhu Lin Forest, but were stopped by Lin抯 friend Lu Zhishen. When Lin Chong was taking care of the forage warehouse in Cangzhou, someone was sent by the Gao family to burn up the grass as well as Lin. Lin saw through the intrigue, killed the burner and went to the Liangshan Mountain with Lu Zhishen.
　
CAST
Roles                                                                     Players
Lin Chong                                                             Yu Kuizhi
Lu Qian                                                                  Chen Guosen
Lu Zhishen                                                             Sun Guiyuan
Thugs                                                                     Tuo Zhiguo, etc.

Drum control: Su Guangzhong
Chief instrumentalist: Zhao Jianhua


Yu Kuizhi
Born in Shenyang in 1961, Grade A actor, Director of the 2nd Troupe of the China Peking Opera Theatre.
Yu became a student of the Shenyang Peking Opera Theatre at 10 years old. He learned and mastered basic skills from Masters like Huang Yunpeng and Yang Yuanyong. He was enrolled into the China Academy of Dramas in 1978 and began learning to take roles of laosheng, civil and military old men in traditional theatrical pieces. In 1982, after graduation, Yu got to work in the China Peking Opera Theatre. He has received assistance and instructions from many artists and masters. Since 1998, he started his postgraduate study. Famous episodes he has ever taken a role in include Generals of the Yang Family, Wu Zixu, Ye Zhulin, and etc. He is quite popular among the opera fans due to his art of singing and appearance in costume and a successor of Peking opera with high reputation at home and abroad. He won prize of Best Performance at the National TV Contest of Young Peking Opera Actors and Actresses, Plum Prize at the 7th Opera Contest, Mei Lanfang Golden Prize and First Star of Peking Opera. Since 80s, he paid visits to Taiwan, Hong Kong, Macao, Singapore, US and Greece to give performances, which were well received.

Huang Hua
Born in Shenyang in 1978
Enrolled into the Shenyang Arts School in 1990, specializing in wudan, female characters skilled in martial arts. She won first prize at the National Teenagers?Invitational Contest in 1994 and Prize of Excellent Performance at the 4th Shenyang Arts Contest in October the same year. She was admitted to the Shenyang Peking Opera Theatre after graduation in 1996 and passed the entrance examinations of the China Academy of Dramas in 1998. Representative episodes include Hujiazhuang Village, Presenting a Pearl on the Rainbow Bridge, etc.

Su Guangzhong (drum beater)
Grade A performer
Born in Beijing in 1960
Admitted into the China Academy of Drama in 1973, specializing in the small drum for making time.
Assigned to work in the China Peking Opera Theatre in 1980.
With the experience of cooperating with famous artists and instructions from Mr. Geng Jinqun, Su increasingly makes his drum controlling techniques perfect. Representatives include Ye Zhu Lin, Generals of the Yang Family, White Snake, and etc. He conducted touring performances and exchanges in countries and regions such as Japan, US, Singapore, Malaysia, Hong Kong and Taiwan. Now he accompanies for noted artists Yu Kuizhi and Li Shengsu.

Zhao Jianhua (chief instrumentalist)
Grade A instrumentalist of Jinghu, Peking opera fiddle with high register.
Assigned to work in the China Peking Opera Theatre in 1985 and accompanied artists like Liu Xiurong, Li Mingsheng and Li Guang. He has cooperated with Yu Kuizhi since 1990. Won the Prize of Accompaniment by the Ministry of Culture for his performance in          in August 1999.

Sun Guiyuan
Second-in-charge and director of the No.2 troupe of the China Peking Opera Theatre, Grade A actor.
Enrolled into the China Academy of Drama in 1956, specializing in hualian, characters with painted face.
Assigned to work in the No. 3 troupe of the Theatre in 1965 after graduation and engaged in production of modern Peking opera pieces. He has had joint performances with famous artists like Li Shiji, Liu Xiurong, Li Weikang and Yu Kuizhi. Won prize of Excellent New Theatrical Piece for his Hong Kong Tour and prize of 1st Wenhua New Theatrical Piece for his Monk Mulian Saving His Mother. In recent years he has been quite successful in directing New Year evening parties of operas sponsored by CCTV. He also co-directed a new historical play with Lin Zhaohua Master of Strategies-Sun Wu.

Li Shengsu
Grade A actress, member of the China Association of Dramatists.
Graduated from the Hebei Arts School, specializing in qingyi, demure female character and huadan, vivacious female character, student of artists Qi Lanqiu and Mei Baojiu.
As early as she joined the Handan Peking Opera Troupe, Li enjoyed good fame in the opera circle by her representative performance in Lian Jinfeng. In 1991, she was appointed to the Shanxi Peking Opera Theatre. 1n 1998, she passed the entrance exams of the China Academy of Drama for post-graduate study and was assigned to work in the China Peking Opera Theatre in 2001. She has been intensively studied the Mei Lanfang style and achieved good appearance in costume, beautiful singing and elegant posture on the stage. She won the Excellent Performance at the National TV Contest of Young Peking Opera Actors and Actresses in 1987, Best Performance in 1991, Excellent Performance by the Ministry of Culture in 1992 and 13th Plum Blossom Award in 1995. Her popular pieces include the Drunken Beauty, the King of Chu Bids Farewells to His Favorite Lady, White Snake and Chinese Imperial Consort.