Poly Grand's holiday season feast of art
The holiday season has arrived and Shanghai Poly Grand Theater in Jiading District has prepared a feast of art for the audiences.
A wide variety of performances, including music, drama, dance and traditional Chinese opera, will be presented by an array of well-known artists or groups, such as the pianist Giovanni Marradi, the Austria Vienna Symphony Orchestra and Deutsche Philharmonie Bonn.
A creative mystery-comedy theater, “The House” written and directed by Chen Peisi, a well-known comedian in China, is highly expected next year. Featuring a homicide case in an old house, the theater invites the audience to engage in the investigation.
Incorporating 14 songs, the Chinese version of “Ghetto,” a play about the experiences of the Jews in the Vilna Ghetto during Nazi occupation in World War II, by Israeli playwright Joshua Sobol, will be staged in March. The story is set in the theater established by the Jews in the ghetto.
“As a European, I was taught the history of World War II and the Holocaust when I was 10 years old. But I’ve just found out it was the ghetto Jews that created the songs,” said Anaistamo Martane, who plays one of the main characters, Hayyah, a former singer.
Premiered at the Haifa Theater in Israel in 1984, the play has received acclaim on several continents. It has been staged in more than 25 countries and translated into 20 languages.
“It is not a play with much sadness but celebrates the Jew’s optimism in the face of death,” said Yan Nan, who stars as the historical figure Jacob Gens, the chief of the Jewish police and later head of the ghetto.
These high-quality shows aren’t expensive. A total of 1,800 free tickets are available on Culture Jiading Cloud, an Internet-based platform for public cultural services. The Shanghai Poly Grand Theater will continue to hold its Public Culture Week in March. Inclusive and accessible, the event week will present five programs at prices from 30 yuan to 80 yuan.
There are several concerts planned during Public Culture Week including: Shanghai Chinese Orchestra, “The Marriage of Figaro,” Broadway and Chinese musicals and the Huju opera drama “The Daughter of Dunhuang.”
Shanghai Poly Grand Theater
Address: 159 Baiyin Rd
Tel: 5951-3300