Milestone production thunders back onto the stage

The Beijing People's Art Theatre has revived Cao Yu's landmark play Thunderstorm as the third production in its Classic Repertoire Restoration Program, bringing the enduring masterpiece back to the Capital Theatre with a fresh cast while remaining faithful to its original artistic vision.

The production premiered on Aug 5 and is directed by veteran actor Yang Lixin, who portrayed the patriarch Zhou Puyuan in the theater's 2004 staging. This time, Yang leads a new generation of performers, including Liu Hui, Liu Wenyi and Gong Yuquan.

First staged by the Beijing People's Art Theatre in 1954 with the script written by Cao Yu and directed by Xia Chun, Thunderstorm is widely regarded as a milestone in the development of modern Chinese spoken drama.

Written in 1934 when Cao Yu was just 24, Thunderstorm is set over a single day in 1925. The play unfolds inside the home of the wealthy Zhou family, where long-buried secrets, forbidden love and class conflict erupt into devastating tragedy. Its psychological depth, explosive dramatic structure and sharp social critique have captivated audiences for generations.

Over the past 72 years, the play has been performed more than 600 times by the company and has undergone several major revivals, including productions in 1979, 1989, 2004, and 2020.

"Thunderstorm is one of the cornerstones of the Beijing People's Art Theatre," says Feng Yuanzheng, veteran actor, director and the theater's president. "Its literary value and artistic spirit deserve to be passed on."

The latest revival re-creates the stage design and costumes of the 1954 production. As the curtain rises, audiences are immersed in the oppressive atmosphere of the Zhou family mansion. French-style green sofas, Western clocks, traditional Chinese hardwood furniture, antiques and calligraphy evoke both Zhou Puyuan's experience studying in Germany and his status as a wealthy coal mine owner while underscoring his identity as a deeply conservative patriarch.

The production also restores the iconic soundscape of thunder and rain, refined by generations of theater artists. Surround-sound effects heighten the sense of mounting tension and impending tragedy that defines Cao Yu's classic.

"The Beijing People's Art Theatre cannot be without Thunderstorm," Yang says. "It was the first Chinese play to achieve true literary maturity, and with it came the birth of genuine modern Chinese spoken drama."

Preparations for the revival began in 2025. Yang organized workshops for the young cast, guiding them through archival materials to study how the theater's earlier generations of actors created their roles. The creative team also traveled to Harbin, Heilongjiang province; Wuxi, Jiangsu province; and Tianjin for immersive field research, seeking historical details that would enrich the production.

According to Yang, the new staging places emphasis on the rhythm of dialogue and the psychological development of the characters. By returning to Cao Yu's original text, he notes, the production presents more nuanced emotions and clearer character motivations, making the nearly century-old drama more accessible to contemporary audiences.

"I hope the audience feels that the curtain itself becomes a dividing line in time," Yang says. "What unfolds on stage belongs to 1925, while the audience is seated in the Capital Theatre in 2026."

Thunderstorm will continue its run at the Capital Theatre through Aug 21.