Yueju Opera classic merged into virtual game to reach young audiences

Ti Gong

Shanghai Yueju Opera Company and video game giant NetEase have collaborated to bring the charm of traditional Chinese theater to young people.

Virtual scenes in NetEase's mobile game "Dream Chaser: the Showbiz" include classic singing episodes and images of the main characters Jia Baoyu and Lin Daiyu from the Yueju Opera play "A Dream of Red Mansions."

Young people can interact with the game's cartoon images which have distinctive Yueju Opera elements, and learn about the art form's various on-stage vocals and postures.

Yueju Opera performers Li Xudan and Wang Wanna also contributed their singing excerpts to the game.

Their detailed facial expressions and movements were digitally captured to create the game characters.

Ti Gong

The game allows players to chase their dreams in showbiz. On the road to super stardom, the actress game character, who starts from scratch as an extra, has to improve her acting skills in different scripts.

Players also need to increase media exposure for the characters in the game, and deal with a public relations crisis.

The love story between Jia Baoyu and Lin Daiyu is interpreted in some virtual scenes of the game, with the support of classic Yueju Opera singing episodes. Players can also undertake tests on their Yueju Opera knowledge.

Ti Gong

The crossover media alliance is a creative and bold attempt by Shanghai Yueju Opera Company to merge traditional theatrical art with online virtual games.

To arouse young people's interest in Yueju Opera, the company has made a few innovations in recent years.

Performer Qiu Danli's Yueju Opera interpretation of a song from popular video game "Genshin Impact" has received over 1.35 million click-through rates on streaming platform Bilibili.

Exquisite cultural products based on the company's representative plays, such as "The Butterfly Lovers" and "The West Chamber," have also been developed and released.

Ti Gong