Drama festival opens in Beijing

The Second International Monodrama Festival opened at the Drum Tower West Theatre in Beijing on Thursday.

Running until Oct 13, the festival comprises five sections — invited productions, a short monodrama competition, expert talks and workshops, immersive monodrama shows, and the Monodrama Stars awards.

A total of 14 productions from countries and regions including China, Greece, Russia and Denmark will be presented to audiences with 52 performances.

This year marks the first time that selected productions are being performed in theater venues in Hebei province, with the aim to enrich the province's performing arts scene, and boost the integration with tourism.

The festival was cofounded by a group of theater experts, including Luo Jinlin, professor at the Central Academy of Drama, Pu Cunxin, renowned actor, and Ren Dongsheng, veteran stage artist. This year, Pu takes on the role as the festival's chairman. The festival also features an expert team comprising six theater scholars and researchers.

Nine productions have been shortlisted into the short monodrama competition section. The festival will also host two lectures, five panel discussions, two workshops, and two immersive monodrama shows which will be performed at the Drum Tower West Theatre's cafe.