Scenes from Of Mice and Men and Coriolanus. They are among the 10 shows of Britain's NT Live screening in Beijing and Shanghai through September. [Photo/China Daily]

The Metropolitan Opera started to run The Met Opera: Live in HD in 2006. The performances are transmitted in high-definition video via satellite from the Metropolitan Opera in New York City to movie theaters in the US and other parts of the world.

NT Live launched in June 2009 and has broadcast more than 20 of the best British theater productions live from the National Theater of Britain. Some 3.5 million people in more than 1,100 venues around the world have enjoyed an NT Live broadcast.

The 10 productions that are screened in cinemas in Beijing and Shanghai reflect the breadth of the work NT Live broadcasts, including productions from London's West End, The Donmar Warehouse, Broadway in the US and of course, the National Theater in London.

Frankenstein, which is one of the 10 productions, was a sellout hit at the National Theater in 2011. Director Danny Boyle's well-known works include the films Trainspotting and the Oscar-winning Slumdog Millionaire and the opening ceremony of London 2012 Olympics.

Cumberbatch, who plays the title role, has a huge fan base in China.

Directed by Stephen Daldry, the West End production of David Hare's Skylight tells the story of schoolteacher Kyra Hollis (Carey Mulligan) and her former lover, Tom Sergeant (Bill Nighy), a successful and charismatic restaurateur whose wife has recently died. As the two try to rekindle their relationship, they find themselves locked in a dangerous battle of opposing ideologies and mutual desires.

The Academy Award-nominated director Stephen Dal-dry's famous movies include The Reader (2008) and Billy Elliot (2000). His sold-out West End production The Audience with actress Helen Mirren will also screen in China.

Actress Mirren reprises her Olivier Award-winning role as Queen Elizabeth II in The National Theater Production The Audience. She won an Academy Award for playing the same role in the movie The Queen.