Theater scene roars back to stage

Jointly produced by the Shanghai Grand Theatre and West Bund Grand Theatre, Natasha, Pierre and the Great Comet of 1812 will open before the end of the year at the West Bund Dome, a multipurpose show space that was previously the former Shanghai Cement Factory.

The Shanghai Grand Theatre has also joined hands with Theatre Young, a new facility that opened last year, to introduce a musical titled The Last Five Years.

Featuring two actors and hardly any props, the musical by Jason Robert Brown tells of the relationship between a struggling actress and a budding novelist as they fall in love, marry and divorce over the span of five years.

The musical was livestreamed on the Shanghai Grand Theatre's new media channel in 2021, when live shows in Shanghai were paused because of COVID-19.

"Audiences are aware of the high quality of the production. This is why the first round of performances at the Shanghai Grand Theatre have been largely sold out," says Bao Rongrong, program director of Theatre Young. "They are very much welcome to catch the second round of shows at our space from Oct 18 to 22."