An empty chair beckons

A red chair stands on an empty stage as the curtain rises. At the opening of The Peony Pavilion, it cradles a sleeping young woman. By the end, it is left empty — an invitation to the audience. Who will sit there next? Who will become Du Liniang?

Eighteen years after its acclaimed premiere, the National Ballet of China's original production, The Peony Pavilion, has returned to the stage, offering a renewed interpretation of one of China's enduring stories of love, longing and self-discovery.

The score is composed by Guo Wenjing, with the set and lighting designed by internationally renowned designer Michael Simon. The costumes are based on designs by the late Oscar-winning costume designer Emi Wada, and Han Jiang serves as the co-lighting designer.

The revived production premiered on Wednesday at Tianqiao Theater in Beijing and will run through Sunday.

"Eighteen years later, when I revisit the production, I am still touched," says director Li Liuyi, who reunited members of the original creative team to refine the ballet for a new generation of audiences.

Adapted from the Ming Dynasty (1368-1644) masterpiece by Tang Xianzu, The Peony Pavilion tells the story of Du Liniang, a sheltered young woman who dreams of the scholar Liu Mengmei and falls deeply in love despite never having met him. She dies of longing, but love proves stronger than death. Guided by her spirit, Liu discovers her portrait and eventually brings her back to life, allowing the lovers to unite.

Li sees Tang as Shakespeare's kindred spirit in the East. Born in the same era, the two playwrights transformed theater by placing human emotion at its heart. Whether through Shakespeare's Juliet or Tang's Du, love becomes more than romance — it becomes a force that challenges convention, confronts mortality, and reveals what it means to be human.

More than four centuries after it was written, Li believes The Peony Pavilion continues to speak to contemporary audiences. "It presents a remarkably open vision of human emotion and imagination. Tang Xianzu celebrates individual desire, dreams and the freedom to pursue one's true self — ideas that continue to resonate across cultures."

For the director, the ballet is not simply a romantic tale. "It is about the awakening of life," he says. "It is about a person discovering her true self through love."

That philosophy shapes every aspect of the production.

Widely regarded as Kunqu Opera's most celebrated masterpiece, The Peony Pavilion has long been admired for its poetic language and emotional depth. Rather than replacing that tradition, the ballet embraces it.

Actresses from the Northern Kunqu Opera Theatre perform iconic arias from the original opera onstage, creating a dialogue between one of China's oldest theatrical traditions and Western ballet.