The Story of Jian'an, a Peking Opera piece about an Eastern Han Dynasty (AD 25-220) woman named Cai Wenji, will be staged at the Ninth Classic Chinese Operas Series event at the Shanghai Oriental Art Center. [Photo/China Daily]

When he was a teenager, Luo Huaizhen competed against Jet Li in a national martial arts tournament.

He ranked sixth in the event, while Li, who was six years younger than him, became the champion.

Luo then decided that a career in martial arts was not for him.

The 59-year-old is now one of the most productive playwrights in China, and one of the most active advocates of the modernization and urbanization of traditional Chinese opera.

Luo's play, The Story of Jian'an, will be staged at the Ninth Classic Chinese Operas Series event at the Shanghai Oriental Art Center.

The play is based on the life of Cai Wenji, a woman from the second century who was famous for her intellect.

Written in 2010, the play was commissioned by the Hubei Peking Opera Theater.

Since its premiere, the play has won several national awards and become part of the company's new repertoire.

Luo has been a frequent participant in the Classic Chinese Opera Series - an annual festival of Chinese opera hosted by the SOAC - and many of his works have also been staged at the festival over the past few years.

As the vice-chairman of the national playwrights' association, Luo has continually recommended projects for the series, says Lin Hongming, president of the SOAC.

The festival will take place from March 18 to April 24 at the SOAC, where 12 plays will be presented, besides a few opera recitals and concerts.

The series started eight years ago, says Lin, adding that takes lots of effort and manpower to attract audiences to the Chinese opera series every year.

"But we have managed to carry on with considerable success," he says.

On average, up to 70 percent of the festival tickets are sold, he adds.

Lin says that due to brisk economic development, the Chinese appetite for cultural activities has been growing steadily in the past few years as evidenced by the increasing fan base for Chinese opera.

China has more than 300 local operas, almost all unique.

"The opera tones and melodies have developed from the dialects," says Luo. So, to write a play for a particular local opera, one has to "think in the dialect".

"You don't have to be fluent in speaking the dialect, but you need to be capable of using it in the writing," he says.

Luo, whose family originated from Henan province, spent much of his childhood in the northern part of Jiangsu province. He then lived and worked in Shanghai for decades.

These experiences have enabled him to write for the Yueju Opera, whose Shanghai dialect is similar to that used in Huaiju in northern Jiangsu.

He also finds writing for the Peking and Kunqu operas easier because they are both based on Putonghua, China's standardized Mandarin.

But beyond the dialects, he says local culture and heritage defines an opera's style and narrative.

One of his best-received plays was Dian Qi (The Sold Wife), adapted from a novel written by Rou Shi (1902-31) in 1930.

The novel is about a woman sold by her husband to another man, and the author is indignant and blames society for the heroine's misfortune.

Luo, however, chose to portray the woman as a mother torn between two families and two children.

"I think we should step back from the stereotypical hatred for the wealthy class and look at the human side of each character."

The play was staged as a Yongju Opera, an opera variety from Zhejiang province. Rou Shi hailed from the same place.

Since it was written in 2002, the play has not only gained recognition in China but also had a successful tour of Europe.

An agency from Broadway took Dian Qi to 40 cities in 2011.

Recently, a series of new policies have been launched to encourage theater and other original stage creations.

Luo is much inspired by this and believes that this will be a turning point for Chinese opera.

"We have to count on the young people to create art for this generation," he says.

Be it a scene from the opera in a feature film, or movements inspired by Chinese opera in modern theater, or the fusion of Peking Opera with jazz and electronic music - Luo welcomes all attempts to integrate Chinese opera with other art forms.