8th Chinese Suzhou Pingtan Art Festival
Time: October 16 to 24
Venue: Suzhou Opera Inheritance Center
Ticket Price: RMB20/10 yuan
Up to 14 Suzhou pingtan troupes across the country will stage a total of 19 shows (including 2 story-telling performances) during the art festival, covering 13 new medium stories, 40-plus stories excerpts and new short stories, and 8 selected excerpts from long stories. In addition, this year’s art festival will also provide special shows at “Jiangnan Little Shuchang” (江南小书场, shuchang is the place where traditional folk art performances are given).
Address: 298 Zhuhui Road, Gusu District, Suzhou
My Name is Ding Xiang
Time: 7:30p.m., October 19
Venue: Opera Hall of Suzhou Ray Grand Theatre 苏州湾大剧院
Ticket Price: RMB80/60/10 yuan
Ding Xiang was abandoned by her parents as a baby in 1910 and then adopted by Nanny Wu. As she grew up, she witnessed many scenes of misery as a result of poverty and oppression. Trying to find a solution to social oppression, Ding Xiang went to Soochow University and met her future husband Yuhong Le. They joined the Chinese Communist Party and began taking part in clandestine activities. Soon after their marriage, Ding Xiang was arrested and was then executed at Yu Hua Tai, leaving Le with endless grief.
Address: Suzhou Bay Grand Theater, East Taihu Lake ecotourism resort, Wujiang District, Suzhou
Thunderstorm
Time: 7:30p.m., October 20&21
Venue: Yinshan Lake Grand Theatre
Ticket Price: RMB280/180/100/50 yuan
Thunderstorm, is a play by the Chinese dramatist Cao Yu. It is one of the most popular dramatic Chinese works of the period prior to the Japanese invasion of China in 1937. It’s a tale of fatalism, retribution, and incestual relations among members of a rich industrialist’s family.
Address: Yinshan Lake Grand Theatre, No. 886 Qinghe Road, Wuzhong District, Suzhou
Under Siege
Time: 7:30p.m., October 21&22
Venue: Changshu Grand Theatre
Ticket Price: RMB680/480/280/180/80 yuan
The story originates from the Chu-Han Contention between the forces of Xiang Yu and Liu Bang. Based on several ancient figures, the dance drama unfolds the desire and fear deep-running in human nature. With Yang Liping as the writer and director, the drama features the elements of classical Chinese music, paper-cutting, show play, and installation art.
Address: Changshu Grand Theater, No.8 Jingwen Road, Changshu, Suzhou
La bohème
HD Opera Screening
Salzburg Festival
Time: 7:30p.m., October 22
Venue: Kunshan Culture and Arts Center
Ticket Price: RMB60 yuan, 110 yuan for two, 150 yuan for three
La bohème is an opera in four acts composed by Giacomo Puccini between 1893 and 1895. The story is set in Paris around 1830, and shows the Bohemian lifestyle of a poor seamstress and her artist friends.
Address: Kunshan Culture and Arts Center，1850 Qianjin West Road, Kunshan, Suzhou
Carmen
HD Opera Screening
Bregenz Festival
Time: 7:30p.m., October 23
Venue: Suzhou Ray Grand Theatre
Ticket Price: RMB60/40 yuan
Carmen is an opera in four acts by French composer Georges Bizet. The opera was first performed by the Opéra-Comique in Paris on 3 March 1875, where its breaking of conventions shocked and scandalized its first audiences. It is the source of many memorable and widely recognized songs, notably those known by the popular names “Toréador Song” and “Habanera”.
Address: Suzhou Bay Grand Theater, East Taihu Lake ecotourism resort, Wujiang District, Suzhou
Riccardo Chailly and Lucerne Festival Orchestra Concert — Ravel
Time: 7:30p.m., October 22
Venue: Kunshan Culture and Arts Center
Ticket Price: RMB60 yuan, 110 yuan for two, 150 yuan for three
Audience can expect to enjoy the masterpieces by Ravel and enter his magical music realm.
Address: Kunshan Culture and Arts Center，1850 Qianjin West Road, Kunshan, Suzhou
Cavalleria Rusticana & Pagliacci
Opera in Concert
Time: 7:30p.m., October 24
Venue: SCAC Grand Theatre
Ticket Price: RMB580/380/280/180/80 yuan
XU Zhong Conductor
Dramatic Soprano Xiaoying XU acts Santuzza
Tenor Haoyin XUE acts Turiddu
Baritone Qianming DOU acts Alfio
Mezzo Soprano Xiaoxi WANG acts Mamma Lucia
Mezzo Soprano Wenxuan JIA acts Lola
Tenor Peng HAN acts Canio
Soprano Qian SONG acts Nedda
Baritone Li SUN acts Tonio
Baritone Qianming DOU acts Silvio
Tenor Haolei YU acts Beppe
Shanghai Opera House Chorus
MASCAGNI CAVALLERIA RUSTICANA
LEONCAVALLO PAGLIACCI
Address: Suzhou culture and Art Center, No.1 Guanfeng Street, Wuzhong District, Suzhou
Yang Yisun Calligraphy Exhibition
Time: October 1 to December 20
Venue: Exhibition Hall D1, Changshu Museum
Yang Yisun, courtesy name Ziyu, is a calligrapher from Tianzhuang in Changshu (now Tianzhuang in Fenghuang Township, Zhangjiagang).
Address: No. 1, Beimen street, Changshu, Suzhou
Crafting Chengdu into A City that Never Sleeps
Modern Rebirth of the Traditional Craftsmanship in Sichuan
Time: September 30 to November 25
Venue: Special Exhibition Gallery, Suzhou Museum
Co-organized by Suzhou Museum, Chengdu Musuem and Chengdu Municipal Intangible Cultural Heritage Protection Center, the exhibition will showcase a total of 56 handicrafts spanning such fields as Sichuan Embroidery, Sichuan Brocade, lacquerware, etc.
Address: Suzhou Museum, No. 204 northeast Street, Suzhou
Picturesque South
Chinese Oil Painting Exhibition
Time: September 29 to October 24
Venue: Suzhou Art Museum
Chinese oil painting maters will together present a batch of works to further spread Jiangnan culture.
Address: 2075 Renmin Road, Gusu District, Suzhou
Jiangnan Texture
Suzhou Embroidery Exhibition
Time: September 26 to November 28
Venue: Wuzhong Museum
Based on the works by Jiang Xueying, Fu Xianghong and Fu Hanlu, the exhibition will display 28 selected Suzhou Embroidery works.
Address: Wuzhong Museum, 9 dantai street, Wuzhong District, Suzhou
Song Brocade Fashion Exhibition
Time: September 30 to November 30
Venue: Suzhou Silk Museum
The exhibition will select over 50 pieces of Song Brocade clothing.
Address: Suzhou Silk Museum, 2001 Renmin Road, Gusu District, Suzhou
Dune
Director: Denis Villeneuve
Stars: Zendaya, Rebecca Ferguson, Timothée Chalamet…
Genre: Drama, Sci-Fi, adventure
In Theaters (China): October 22
A mythic and emotionally charged hero’s journey, “Dune” tells the story of Paul Atreides, a brilliant and gifted young man born into a great destiny beyond his understanding, who must travel to the most dangerous planet in the universe to ensure the future of his family and his people. As malevolent forces explode into conflict over the planet’s exclusive supply of the most precious resource in existence-a commodity capable of unlocking humanity’s greatest potential-only those who can conquer their fear will survive.
The Heist of the Century
Director: Ariel Winograd
Stars: Guillermo Francella, Diego Peretti, Luis Luque, Pablo Rago…
Genre: Comedy, crime
In Theaters (China): October 22
The film is based on the true story of the robbery of the Banco Río branch in the Buenos Aires town of Acassuso on January 13, 2006, which was assaulted by a gang of six thieves armed with toy weapons. They took 23 hostages and took $15 million from 147 safes, which they later abandoned after their getaway.