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The 2026 Excellence in Chengdu Fine Theatre Showcase & The 9th Tianfu Drama Season officially kicks off from August to November 2026. Hosted by the Chengdu Municipal Bureau of Culture, Radio, Film, Television and Tourism and undertaken by Chengdu Art Theatre Co., Ltd., this event serves as a landmark cultural brand activity marking the launch year of Chengdu’s 15th Five-Year Plan. This year’s drama season assembles more than a dozen top-tier stage productions from home and abroad. Adopting a government-subsidized public welfare model, performances will be staged at major theatres across the city, continuously enriching the city’s supply of performing arts and consolidating the artistic foundation for building a world-famous cultural city.

This year, this curated theatrical lineup brims with sincere offerings. Boasting more than a dozen productions spanning symphonies, dance dramas, musicals, traditional Chinese operas, spoken dramas and Chinese national-style concerts, the roster features world-renowned top symphonic ensembles, breakout hit dance dramas, timeless Broadway classics and original local masterpieces. There is surely one performance worth your trip to the theatre.

In the dance drama category, the critically acclaimed Poetic Dance: The Journey of a Legendary Landscape Painting presents a magnificent showcase of Eastern aesthetics. Produced by the China Oriental Performing Arts Group and co‑choreographed by Zhou Liya and Han Zhen, this poetic dance work has transcended the stage to become a cultural phenomenon since it appeared on the TV show National Treasure and the CCTV Spring Festival Gala. It has won the 17th Wenhua Award, the 2022 China Copyright Gold Award (Works Category), and was named among the Best Innovative Achievements in Culture and Tourism for 2022. Its return to Chengdu is well worth revisiting.

Meanwhile, the National Ballet of China’s The Peony Pavilion interprets Tang Xianzu’s timeless romantic vision through the ethereal elegance of pointe work. With the lightness of ballet interwoven with the lingering charm of Kunqu opera, this production served as the opening production of the 2011 Edinburgh International Festival and the closing production of the 2015 Lincoln Center Festival in New York. It delivers a breathtaking aesthetic experience that seamlessly blends Eastern and Western artistry.

In the musicals and theatre section, the original English-language Broadway production of Chicago returns to China with its jazz-infused score, sultry choreography, and dark humor. This classic musical, a recipient of multiple international accolades including the Tony, Olivier, and Grammy Awards, has never failed to captivate audiences.

In the symphony and concert section, a constellation of renowned maestros and orchestras will gather in Chengdu, marking one of the highest-profile international symphonic events in the city this year. Anne‑Sophie Mutter, a violinist who rose to legend in the Karajan era, will share the stage with Britain’s most iconic Royal Philharmonic Orchestra, under the baton of Music Director Vasily Petrenko. They will perform Mendelssohn’s Violin Concerto in E minor and Beethoven’s Symphony No. 5, with its iconic four‑note motif, making it an unmissable annual highlight for Chengdu’s music lovers. Valery Gergiev, wielding his signature toothpick baton, will lead the nearly two‑century‑old Mariinsky Symphony Orchestra in masterpieces by Shostakovich, Prokofiev, or Tchaikovsky, showcasing the profound and vigorous artistry of the Russian school. This also marks the most significant Eastern European orchestra to visit Chengdu in recent years.

The Hong Kong Chinese Orchestra, acclaimed as the “Philharmonic” of Chinese folk music, will be conducted by Sichuan‑based National First‑Class Conductor Xiao Chao. They will present a curated repertoire that harmonizes the melodic traditions of Lingnan with the scenic grandeur of Bashu, blending delicate elegance with bold, far‑reaching splendor, in a concert that resonates deeply with the cultural ties between the two regions.

The Twenty‑Four Court Musicians’ theatrical Chinese-style concert, “Three Kingdoms: A Saga of the Three Kingdoms,” uses “time‑space letters” as its narrative thread, bringing the present and history together in a spiritual dialogue with Zhuge Liang across millennia. The interweaving of guqin, pipa, flute, and xiao with light and shadow transports the audience back to an era of heroes, poetry, and wine.

The 2026 Excellence in Chengdu Fine Theatre Showcase is grounded in the inheritance and innovation of Bashu culture, driven by both classic revivals and bold new interpretations. It continues to tap into the literary heritage of Bashu and the ancient Jinsha culture, while vigorously supporting original works by local troupes. Through stage arts, it tells Chengdu’s stories and injects vibrant theatrical energy into the city’s drive to build itself into a world‑famous cultural city.

The musical Jinsha, a classic in Chengdu’s performing arts history, with music by Sanbao and libretto by Guanshan, has been staged over 2,000 times in two decades. In 2026, it will return to Chengdu in a pure symphonic concert version, allowing those melodies etched into the city’s DNA to flourish anew in orchestral arrangements and fulfill a long‑awaited reunion with the city’s collective memory.

The play Ripples in Dead Water, a classic intimately tied to Chengdu, is adapted from Li Jieren’s novel of the same title. In 1991, it won the Publicity Department’s “Five‑One Project” Outstanding Production Award and the Ministry of Culture’s Wenhua Award. In 2026, marking the 135th anniversary of Li Jieren’s birth and the 90th anniversary of the novel’s publication, the Chengdu Drama Troupe will revive the work with a fresh production. Featuring vivid character portrayals and rich Sichuanese flavors, the play will depict the lives and emotional entanglements of ordinary people amid social change,breathing new life into this Bashu literary classic in the new era.

In the spoken drama section, The Book of Life, adapted from Li Peifu’s Mao Dun Prize‑winning novel of the same title, portrays the sweeping transformations of the Central Plains over half a century in a weighty narrative, interweaving individual fates with the roar of the times to unfold a stage epic. The production has won the 18th Wenhua Award and the 17th Outstanding Production Award of the CPC Central Committee’s “Five‑One Project,” and stands as a critically acclaimed masterpiece of the Shaanxi People’s Art Theatre.

In the traditional opera section, this year’s Showcase brings together three representative genres — Yue Opera, Peking Opera, and Sichuan Opera — presenting a rich repertoire for Chengdu opera enthusiasts.

Yue Opera Su Dongpo interprets the turbulent life of the great literary giant through the elegant and melodious tones of Yue opera. With three-time Plum Blossom Award winner and renowned Yue opera artist Mao Weitao as artistic director, this production marks her return to creating an original major work after a decade, a testament to her artistic craftsmanship.

Peking Opera Falling Plum Blossom subtly incorporates Sichuanese elements. It won the inaugural Sichuan Art Festival’s Best Production Award in the Theatre Category and the Outstanding Performance Award at the 14th China Theatre Festival, and was selected for performance at the 8th China Peking Opera Festival. The fusion of Peking Opera stylings and Sichuan charm produces a distinctive artistic spark.

Sichuan opera Tiemu Gaowa, the final work of late playwright Wei Minglun and starring Plum Blossom Award winner Wang Yumei, has been selected for the 2025-26 Sichuan Arts Fund and the 2026 National Arts Fund.

Meanwhile, the gala “Artists on Campus” brings together over one hundred winners of the Plum Blossom, Golden Bell, and Lotus Awards, along with other honorees from various artistic disciplines, taking them out of the theatre and into schools, allowing children to come face‑to‑face with art.

Over the past decade, the event has introduced more than 100 quality productions from home and abroad, staged over 300 performances, and distributed over 100,000 subsidized public‑benefit tickets, alongside regular public welfare activities including fine arts outreach and campus aesthetic education. From the first curtain rise, to tens of thousands of theatergoers, to millions of discussions and expectations across online platforms, the “Chengdu Fine Theatre Showcase” brand has become an annual cultural gala eagerly anticipated by Chengdu residents.

This year’s Chengdu Fine Theatre Showcase will offer over 9,000 subsidized tickets, with a 30% discount tier available for all introduced productions. Residents can purchase tickets through the Damai App, Maoyan App, or the official ticketing channels of major theatres across the city. Great shows are beyond the ordinary, and tickets are within everyone’s reach. This summer and autumn, see you at the theatre.

Media Contact
Company Name: Chengdu Art Theatre Co., Ltd.
Contact Person: Ava Wong
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Country: China
Website: https://www.cd-ysjy.com/