China National Peking Opera Company lands in London for dramatic encore

The China National Peking Opera Company will return to the UK for the third time when it brings four performances to London's Sadler's Wells this weekend.

Romantic comedy The Phoenix Returns Home and tragic military drama A River All Red will open at renowned dance venue Sadler’s Wells on October 21.

This is the third time the National Peking Opera Company has brought productions to the UK, following tours in 2015 and 2016.

Peking Opera [File Photo: pconline.com.cn]

In an interview with SINO radio, director Kevin Zhang said audiences attending the performances could expect a combination of music, acrobatics, drama and dance drawing on traditional and modern influences. “This is a very unique performing art,” he told listeners.

Zhang also told audiences to look out for the distinctive use of makeup and costume in the operas. “Each color on (the actor’s) face and costume can tell us something about the story,” he added.

Jin Xu, chancellor from the Chinese Embassy in the UK, said that the visit represented a wider trend of the UK paying greater attention to Chinese culture. 

Peking Opera, one of China’s most influential styles of stage art, has been around for over 200 years in China. Performers often train from a young age in a wide range of stage arts including singing, dancing, acting, mime and acrobatics.