| DATE: | Thursday, September 15, 2005 |
|---|---|
| TIME: | 7:00 PM |
| PLACE: | Wheeler Auditorium |
| FORMAT: | Film screening |
| SPONSORS: | Institute of East Asian Studies, Cal Performances |
Organized in conjunction with the performances of the National Ballet of China: Raise the Red Lantern on Friday, Saturday, and Sunday, September 16-18, 2005 at Zellerbach Hall. Raise the Red Lantern, an adaptation of Zhang Yimou's award-winning film, is among the ensemble's most breathtaking accomplishments, displaying a uniquely Chinese style of ballet theater.
A screening of Zhang Yimou's Raise the Red Lantern will provide context for the dance performance by the National Ballet of China on September 16-18 in Zellerbach Hall. Based on Su Tong's novel Wives and Concubines, Zhang Yimou has now adapted Raise the Red Lantern as the first ballet to blend Peking Opera and Western dance. The ballet has provoked controversy in China, "partly because of its subject-matter – the role of women under feudalism – partly because it dares to blend ballet and traditional Chinese dance, and partly because it is staged by Zhang Yimou, the most famous film director in China," according to artistic director, Zhao Ruheng.
