Virtual Landscape Performance

The first real-scene live show to narrate the legend of Emperor Kangxi (1654-1722), one of the greatest emperors in China’s history, will make its debut in Chengde of Hebei province on June 15, according to the investor.

With a total investment of about 200 million yuan, the show will be staged in an area of 9,000 square meters around Yuanbao Mountain in Chengde, which is a 1.5-hour drive away from Beijing, said Mei Hong, president of Prosperous Culture Investment Co.

More than 1,000 actors and actresses will join the live show; a majority of them have little performance experience, said Mei Shuiyuan, the show director.

Invented by Chinese artists, the real-scene live show will have a high-tech system including sound and light for astonishing stage effects and a big army of performers to display the charm of the local culture. Real-scene live shows usually depend heavily on natural scenes.

For the show, investors imported more than 200 horses which will run down the mountain together, giving a thrilling impression to the audience, said director Mei.

Mei, a writer and a pioneer in the real-scene live shows, told reporters he plans to export the new art to some Southeast Asian countries like Malaysia, Vietnam and Cambodia because the weather in those areas is suitable for staging shows all year around.

The shows could break even anywhere between two to ten years depending on the popularity, Mei said.

Because the shows can greatly promote local tourism, the emerging industry is getting bigger support from local governments and attracting more private funds which are not only eyeing the box office receipts, Mei told China Daily.

“Usually they will buy a big land lot around the show area and build other facilitates including hotels, shopping malls, other entertainment facilities or even developing real estate,” he said.

Some figures show there are more than 200 real-scene live shows in difference locations of China everyday.

By Chen Hong

Editor: Shi Liwei