{"page":"\u003clink rel=\"stylesheet\" href=\"https://lessonplanet.com/assets/packs/css/resources-572d6a42.css\" /\u003e\n\u003clink rel=\"stylesheet\" href=\"https://lessonplanet.com/assets/packs/css/lp_boclips_stylesheets-f4d0de30.css\" media=\"all\" /\u003e\n\u003cdiv data-title='Beijing Fringe Festival draws in the crowds' data-url='/boclips/videos/5c54bb52d8eafeecae124382' data-video-url='/boclips/videos/5c54bb52d8eafeecae124382' id='bo_player_modal'\u003e\n\u003cdiv class='boclips-resource-page modal-dialog panel-container'\u003e\n\u003cdiv class='react-notifications-root'\u003e\u003c/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv class='rp-header'\u003e\n\u003cdiv class='rp-type'\u003e\n\u003ci aria-hidden='true' class='fai fa-regular fa-circle-play'\u003e\u003c/i\u003e\nVideo\n\u003c/div\u003e\n\u003ch1 class='rp-title' id='video-title'\u003e\nBeijing Fringe Festival draws in the crowds\n\u003c/h1\u003e\n\u003cdiv class='rp-actions'\u003e\n\u003cdiv class='mr-1'\u003e\n\u003ca class=\"btn btn-success\" data-posthog-event=\"Signup: LP Signup Activity\" data-posthog-location=\"body_link_boclips\" data-remote=\"true\" href=\"/subscription/new\"\u003e\u003cspan\u003e\u003cspan\u003eGet Free Access\u003c/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"\"\u003e for 10 Days\u003c/span\u003e\u003cspan\u003e!\u003c/span\u003e\u003c/span\u003e\u003c/a\u003e\n\u003c/div\u003e\n\u003c/div\u003e\n\u003c/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv class='rp-body'\u003e\n\u003cdiv class='rp-info'\u003e\n\u003cdiv aria-label='Hide resource details' class='rp-hide-info' role='button' tabindex='0'\u003e\u0026times;\u003c/div\u003e\n\u003ci aria-label='Expand resource details' class='rp-expand-info fai fa-solid fa-up-right-and-down-left-from-center' role='button' tabindex='0'\u003e\u003c/i\u003e\n\u003ci aria-label='Compress resource details' class='rp-compress-info fai fa-solid fa-down-left-and-up-right-to-center' role='button' tabindex='0'\u003e\u003c/i\u003e\n\u003cdiv class='rp-rating'\u003e\n\u003cspan class='resource-pool'\u003e\n\u003cspan class='pool-label'\u003ePublisher:\u003c/span\u003e\n\u003cspan class='pool-name'\u003e\n\u003cspan class='text'\u003e\u003ca data-publisher-id=\"30356011\" href=\"/search?publisher_ids%5B%5D=30356011\"\u003eCurated Video\u003c/a\u003e\u003c/span\u003e\n\u003c/span\u003e\n\u003c/span\u003e\n\u003c/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv class='rp-description'\u003e\n\u003cspan class='short-description'\u003eThey call themselves \"Duel\", staging their brand of musical performance like a battle of wits.A few short years ago a performance like this would have been unthinkable in China.In the past, conservative music traditions would have made a...\u003c/span\u003e\n\u003cspan class='full-description hide'\u003eThey call themselves \"Duel\", staging their brand of musical performance like a battle of wits.\u003cbr/\u003eA few short years ago a performance like this would have been unthinkable in China.\u003cbr/\u003eIn the past, conservative music traditions would have made a slapstick music show hard to stomach - but today''s audience at the Beijing Fringe Festival love it.\u003cbr/\u003eBoth musicians have a classical training, but their show is full of comedy routines that have made the show a big hit with the Chinese theatre fans.\u003cbr/\u003eAccording to artistic director, Meng Jinghui, the fledgeling festival is already established as a destination event on the capital''s arts scene:\u003cbr/\u003e\"The Festival has become a brand. Every September, people come to Beijing not just to eat Peking Duck, go to the Great Wall and visit the Forbidden City. For some, the most important thing now is to go to the theatre.\"\u003cbr/\u003eThe Chinese theatre scene has come a long way since the Beijing International Youth Theatre Festival, now the Fringe Festival, started 4 years ago.\u003cbr/\u003e\"Duel\", featuring cellist Laurent Cirade and pianist Paul Sta�cu, are just one of six acts from the Avignon Festival in France.\u003cbr/\u003eFor festival-goer Xie Shanshan, there is a growing appetite for shows like this:\u003cbr/\u003e\"I think this performance was of a high standard. After I finished watching, I feel quite excited, because in Beijing we rarely get the opportunity to see this kind of performance.\"\u003cbr/\u003eFrom modest beginnings, the Beijing Fringe has grown rapidly year on year, with productions ranging from contemporary dance to experimental theatre and musical performances.\u003cbr/\u003e11 venues in the Chinese capital are hosting performances from 12 countries around the world, including the Netherlands, the UK and France. \u003cbr/\u003eThe festival also presents the work of young Chinese playwrights and directors from the post-Mao generation who are experimenting with new forms of theatre, much like their western counterparts.\u003cbr/\u003eMore and more young Chinese are getting involved, says actress Wang Jingjing:\u003cbr/\u003e\"It''s still not commonplace to see these kinds of performances, but increasingly there are more and more people involved. To take my own case as an example, I used to work in the media. I was interested in this and now I have even become a performer. So there is an audience for this kind of thing.\"\u003cbr/\u003eThe international flavour is a big part of the festival''s attraction says Wang Jingjing, who is performing here in her own show:\u003cbr/\u003e\"Normally I watch domestic performances, because we don''t often have the chance to watch performances from abroad. But we do watch them when we can. In terms of experimental theatre, I think the level is better in other countries at the moment. When I want to watch a film, often I will choose one from another country. But I think China has some good performances, as does Taiwan.\"\u003cbr/\u003eMeng Jinghui is one the most best-known directors in China, having been director of the Chinese National Theatre. \u003cbr/\u003eNow, growing the festival is his passion:\u003cbr/\u003e\"This year is the fourth year of Beijing International Youth Theatre Festival. It was previously called the Youth Theatre Festival, but now it''s called the Beijing International Youth Theatre Festival. In the first year, we had 11 directors and 11 plays. In the fourth year, this year, we have 58 directors and 58 plays. It is getting bigger and bigger, and we are also becoming more international. At the same time, there is more involvement from the younger Chinese generation and more of their creative input. They are also represented on this platform and have become more confident.\" \u003cbr/\u003eAnd he says that it is not just the productions that are improving, as more and more international acts appear at the festival, but that the technical and operational teams are also getting better.\u003cbr/\u003eThe benefits are two-way says \"Duel\" cellist Laurent Cirade:\u003cbr/\u003e\"My performance is a combination of classical music and humour and I think the interaction with various different cultures will also help to promote creativity and originality here. I am really looking forward to communicating with the young people of China.\"\u003cbr/\u003eFestival-goer Xie Shanshan agrees, saying that Festival has grown quickly in its four years:\u003cbr/\u003e\"The Youth Theatre Festival has grown very quickly. This year''s festival had many more performances than in previous years.\"\u003cbr/\u003eWith the Festival''s reputation spreading around the country via the Internet, more and more people from outside the capital are travelling to attend the performances, as well as calling for similar events to be held in other Chinese cities.\u003cbr/\u003eA total of 130 performances over 20 days are grouped into categories - \"new works\", \"international works\", \"dance theatre\" and \"Beijing operas\" and include text readings, workshops and seminars.\u003cbr/\u003eThe Beijing International Youth Theatre Festival was renamed the Beijing Fringe Festival, inspired in part by the annual Edinburgh Festival Fringe, the world''s biggest, which started in the Scottish capital more than 60 years ago.\u003cbr/\u003eFestival founder Meng Jinghui enrolled in the master''s programme at the Central Academy of Drama in 1988, and, while there, directed plays by Pinter, Ionesco, Beckett and Genet. In 1992, he joined the National Theatre Company of China, then known as the Central Experimental Theatre Troupe, a breeding ground for new theatre. \u003cbr/\u003eMeng says he likes to push the boundaries in all the works that he is involved in and says he sees the theatre as a meeting place for architecture, music, dance, literature, acrobatics, drama and other art forms.\u003cbr/\u003eMeng Jinghui visited the Netherlands last year at the invitation of Theater Instituut Nederland and decided to bring a number of Dutch groups to Beijing for this year''s festival alongside those from Avignon in France.\u003cbr/\u003eThe 4th Beijing Fringe Festival started on September 5th at the National Centre for the Performing Arts in Beijing and runs until September 25th.\u003cbr/\u003eAP Television \u003cbr/\u003eBeijing, China - September 5, 2011\u003cbr/\u003e1. Mid of \"Duel\" performing on stage\u003cbr/\u003e2. Mid of audience applauding\u003cbr/\u003e3. Wide of poster for festival\u003cbr/\u003e4. Close of poster from festival reading (English): \"2011 Beijing Fringe Festival\"\u003cbr/\u003e5. Close of Meng Jinghui, festival artistic director and founder, chatting in a group\u003cbr/\u003e6. SOUNDBITE (Mandarin) Meng Jinghui, Artistic Director, Beijing Fringe Festival: \u003cbr/\u003e\"The Festival has become a brand. Every September, people come to Beijing not just to eat Peking Duck, go to the Great Wall and visit the Forbidden City. For some, the most important thing now is to go to the theatre.\" \u003cbr/\u003e7. Duel performing comedy act on stage\u003cbr/\u003e8. Shot from side of Duel performing on stage\u003cbr/\u003e10. Audience members laughing\u003cbr/\u003e11. SOUNDBITE (Mandarin) Xie Shanshan, audience member:  \u003cbr/\u003e\"I think this performance was of a high standard. After I finished watching, I feel quite excited, because in Beijing we rarely get the opportunity to see this kind of performance.\"\u003cbr/\u003e12. Close of poster reading (English/ French) \"Festival Off, d''Avignon a Pekin\"\u003cbr/\u003e13. Actors performing on stage\u003cbr/\u003e14. Solo shot of woman performing on stage\u003cbr/\u003e15. Actress Wang Jingjing lying in bed on stage\u003cbr/\u003e16. Closer shot of Wang Jingjing lying in bed on stage \u003cbr/\u003e17. SOUNDBITE (Mandarin) Wang Jingjing, actress: \u003cbr/\u003e\"It''s still not commonplace to see these kinds of performances, but increasingly there are more and more people involved. To take my own case as an example, I used to work in the media. I was interested in this and now I have even become a performer. So there is an audience for this kind of thing.\"\u003cbr/\u003e18. Wang Jingjing sitting upright in bed on stage\u003cbr/\u003e19. SOUNDBITE (Mandarin) Wang Jingjing, actress: \u003cbr/\u003e\"Normally I watch domestic performances, because we don''t often have the chance to watch performances from abroad. But we do watch them when we can. In terms of experimental theatre, I think the level is better in other countries at the moment. When I want to watch a film, often I will choose one from another country. But I think China has some good performances, as does Taiwan.\"\u003cbr/\u003e20. Woman having make-up applied backstage \u003cbr/\u003e21. Activity backstage \u003cbr/\u003e22. Musicians practising backstage \u003cbr/\u003e23. Festival artistic director and founder Meng Jinghui chatting in a group\u003cbr/\u003e24. SOUNDBITE (Mandarin) Meng Jinghui, Artistic Director, Beijing Fringe Festival: \u003cbr/\u003e\"This year is the fourth year of Beijing International Youth Theatre Festival. It was previously called the Youth Theatre Festival, but now it''s called the Beijing International Youth Theatre Festival. In the first year, we had 11 directors and 11 plays. In the fourth year, this year, we have 58 directors and 58 plays. It is getting bigger and bigger, and we are also becoming more international. At the same time, there is more involvement from the younger Chinese generation and more of their creative input. They are also represented on this platform and have become more confident.\" \u003cbr/\u003e25. Audience members having tickets checked\u003cbr/\u003e26. Audience members walking into auditorium\u003cbr/\u003e27. Wide of \"Duel\" performing on stage\u003cbr/\u003e28. SOUNDBITE (French) Laurent Cirade, cellist, \"Duel\": \u003cbr/\u003e\"My performance is a combination of classical music and humour and I think the interaction with various different cultures will also help to promote creativity and originality here. I am really looking forward to communicating with the young people of China.\"\u003cbr/\u003e29. Mid of \"Duel\" performing on stage\u003cbr/\u003e30. SOUNDBITE (Mandarin) Xie Shanshan, audience member: \u003cbr/\u003e\"The Youth Theatre Festival has grown very quickly. This year''s festival had many more performances than in previous years.\"\u003cbr/\u003e31. Mid exterior of sign on \"9\" Nine Theater building at the Chaoyang Cultural Center complex\u003cbr/\u003e32. Sign for the Beijing Theater of People''s Art in central Beijing\u003cbr/\u003e33. Design of man playing saxophone on the outside of a building at the Nine Theater\u003cbr/\u003eNow in its 4th year, the Beijing Fringe Festival is the biggest so far, attracting crowds of Chinese theatre lovers.\u003cbr/\u003eHomegrown talent rubs shoulders with international performers in shows ranging from dance to experimental theatre and slapstick musical comedy.\u003cbr/\u003e\u003c/span\u003e\n\u003c/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv class='action-container flex justify-between'\u003e\n\u003cbutton aria-expanded='false' aria-label='Read more description' class='rp-full-description' type='button'\u003e\n\u003ci class='fai fa-solid fa-align-left'\u003e\u003c/i\u003e\n\u003cspan id='read_more'\u003eRead More\u003c/span\u003e\n\u003c/button\u003e\n\u003cdiv class='rp-report'\u003e\n\u003c/div\u003e\n\u003c/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv aria-labelledby='resource-details-heading' class='rp-info-section'\u003e\n\u003ch2 class='title' id='resource-details-heading'\u003eResource 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