About The Taming of the Shrew

This play is a contemporary interpretation of Shakespeare's comedy The Taming of the Shrew.

A wealthy girl who was labeled "shrew" because of her shrewd personality was betrothed with a generous dowry by her father to a self-confident young man who claimed to have "seen the roar of a desert lion". One side used means to subdue the other, while the other side was unrestrained and resisted. After several battles, the girl lost. With confusion about gender identity, her eyes turned to the East, where a Chinese shrew trained her husband to be very docile and obedient. However, can this young Oriental woman be a model for defending women's rights? What kind of fate will they encounter?

Credits

Producer: Hao Rong

Artistic Director: Xu Yongsheng

Director: Cao Yan

Literary Consultant: Ma Wenqi

Dramaturgy: Zhao Zhiyong, Yin Yunhui

Stage Designer: Liu Xinglin

Assistant Stage Designer: Wu Lei

Lighting Designer: Hu Yaohui

Assistant Lighting Designers: Wang Yuqi, Zhang Bowen

Character Modeling Designer: Tian Dan

Makeup Assistant: Guo Rongnan, Huang Yujie

Costume Assistant: Zhang Yifan

Choreography and Movement Designer: Yang Qi, Zhang Yinwen

Music Designer: Chen Xiaoman

Poster Designer: Wu Lei

Subtitle Operator: Yin Yunhui

Video Designer: Li Peize

Assistant Director: Chen Jin

Stage Manage: Deng Rui

Deputy Stage Manager: Wang Qi

Assistant Stage Manager: Yin Yunhui

Audio Operator: Xue Zimo

Project Coordinator: Sun Liang

Propagandist: Shen Qi

Cast:

  Lei Fengrui – Katherina/Petruchio

  Xiong Jiaxingzi – Petruchio/Katherina

  Liu Bochun – Liu Shi/Chen Sheng

  Wang Yaqing – Chen Sheng / Liu Shi

  Chen Jin – The Rapper

  Kang Jiahuan – Female Stage Supervisor

  Zhang Yan – Male Stage Supervisor

Director of Band Accompaniment: Li Nan

Band: Zhang Zhao, An Junzhou, Guo Mingxuan, Zhao Hongfei, Xie Yifan

About Cao Yan

Cao Yan is Professor, Master's Supervisor and Dean of the Peking Opera Department, the Central Academy of Drama. Cao Yan is also the visiting scholar of Yale University and New York University.

Cao Yan's works involve Drama, Peking Opera, Huai Opera, Yi Opera, Zhuang Opera and Shanghai Opera, etc., whose works won Excellent Play Award of China Theatre Festival, Gold Award of National Minority Performance and Best Play Award of GATS. Cao Yan won Excellent Director Award of China Theatre Festival and Famous Young Teacher Award of Beijing Municipality and so on.

Cao Yan has visited France, Sweden, Denmark, Italy, Russia, South Korea and other countries. She has participated in Italian VIE Theatre Festival, Russian BRICS Theatre Festival and the Graduates Art Festival of Korea National University of Arts with her works.

About The Central Academy of Drama

The Central Academy of Drama is the first higher educational institution of theatre in the People's Republic of China and is now affiliated with China's Ministry of Education. It is ranked among the top Theatre, Film & Television arts institutions in China and has been selected for the country’s dedication to fostering world-class disciplines. The Central Academy of Drama is the headquarters of the China Alliance of Higher

Educational Institutes for Theatre, Asia Theatre Education Centre (ATEC) and World Theatre Education Alliance (WTEA). Indeed, it is world famous as a higher educational institute of the arts.

Since its reopening in the year 2017, the Experimental theater troupe of the Central Academy of Drama has served as an effective

platform for artistic creation, performance and academic research. With a dedicated team consisting of both renowned and young artists from the Academy, the theatre has established and followed guidelines for creating artistic, classical, experimental and international productions. That is, it advocates theatre experimentation, explores the rules for the creation of classical repertoires, and integrates the dramatic art with research, striving to push China's outstanding theatre onto the world stage.