On May 28th, the “China-UK in Drama”—China-UK Youth Drama Exchange Project was held in the auditorium of Beijing Foreign Studies University. Hosted by the Chinese People’s Association for Friendship with Foreign Countries (CPAFFC), Beijing Foreign Studies University (BFSU), and Edinburgh Napier University of UK (Napier), this Project was put forward after Chinese President Xi’s state visit to the UK when he proposed to commemorate the 400th anniversary of the passing of William Shakespeare and the Chinese playwright Tang Xianzu. Around 1,000 people watched the performance, among which are Vice President of the CPAFFC Song Jingwu, Deputy Party Secretary of BFSU Zhao Yu, Vice President of BFSU Jia Wenjian, Minister Counsellor of the British Embassy in China Tim Losty, Counsellor Nick Low, Professor of Communication University of China Zhang Jun, Artist of Beijing People's Art Theatre Li Bin and Yang Tiezhu, and teachers and students from Napier of UK who visited China for this project together with students from 13 Universities in Beijing.
The 6 classical or original drama pieces that reflected the two countries cultures were played by students from China and the UK, which were indeed a feast for the eyes. A Midsommer Nights Dreame brought by teachers and students of BFSU gave the audience a glimpse of the Romanticism in Shakespearean drama; the original drama Promise of Loyalty showed the Chinese young students’ understanding and pursuit of honouring commitments; another original play, Crook and Isabel’s Choice, was based on the life story of David Crook and his wife, Isabel Crook, two of the first group of foreign teachers to work in China, and reviewed the glorious deeds made by the British friends in China to promote English teaching; The Merchant of Venice and Measure for Measure played by students from School of Arts and Creative Industries of Napier presented the original flavor of Shakespearean classics to the audience; and their English version of a famous Chinese drama Thunderstorm reflected the British young people’s understanding and appreciation of the Chinese drama, culture and art.
Vice President Song Jingwu of the CPAFFC said in his speech that mutual understanding and friendship between youths serve as the foundation of the culture exchanges and mutual reflection between China and abroad, and hoped the teachers and students made good use of the “China-UK in Drama” —China-UK Youth Drama Exchange Project as the bridge of art for the people-to-people exchange between the youths of the two countries. Vice President Jia Wenjian of BFSU commented in his speech that China-UK in Drama is a platform for youngsters of the two countries to demonstrate their vitality and creativity and to better their cultural literature and artistic taste. He is convinced that the Chinese and British youngsters will deepen their understanding of drama, and the two cultures can develop through constant sharing and exchange.
Students from both countries reflected that by communicating and performing with each other on the same stage, they have improved their language and acting skills, and more importantly, gained a deeper understanding of and passion for each other’s culture.
This event has been reported by mainstream media including Xinhuanet and People’s Daily Online.
