Actors in rehearsal for The Jiang's House 1912.
Market reaction
In April last year, a project to stage a Chinese-language version of The War Horse, a play based on the best-selling book by British author Michael Morpurgo, raised 2 million yuan in less than eight hours.
"It's the most successful example so far," said Xu Xun, head of the performance department at Dalian Repertory Theater. However, he cautioned that crowdfunding is not realistic for most small theater companies that lack big-name actors. "But it helps to test the market reaction in advance, and the participation of netizens makes the market for performances of contemporary drama more prosperous," he said.
Small theater companies still have a way to go, though. A survey of cultural consumption published in March last year by the China Art and Science Technology Research Institute, showed that theatrical performances ranked as the eighth most-popular leisure activity, below surfing the internet, watching TV or movies, and travel. The results indicated that modern drama is still a "minority art form", irrespective of the scale of investment, all-star lineups or box-office takings.
Nevertheless, audience numbers are rising, according to Wang Decheng, general manager of Dalian Poly Theater, one of the city's best-known venues. "Many locals who have never watched theatrical performances are now visiting our theater," he said.
With 1,600 seats, the theater possesses first-class facilities and promotes more than 100 high-level concerts every year. It also invites well-known theater companies from both home and abroad to perform.
In the first half of this year, the theater launched a Modern Drama Festival, which featured performances of more than 10 recent classics, such as Peach Blossom Land, Cellmates and Office Romance.
