Art beat in Beijing

Northern Kunqu Opera Theater will present the evergreen Kunqu performance, Lady White Snake, on Lantern Festival Day (Feb 24), which marks the end of the Spring Festival. Over the centuries, the ancient story of Lady White Snake has been performed in variousartforms, includingfilm, Peking Opera and TV series. According to Yang Fengyi, director of Northern Kunqu Opera Theater, the Kunqu version of Lady White Snake focuses on the actors' skills and the inner world of Lady White Snake. Kunqu actresses, Shao Tianshuai and Ha Dongxue, will play the leading role of Bai Suzhen, a white snake spirit turned mortal woman. Young Kunqu actor Shao Zheng will play the scholar Xu Xian, the love of Bai Suzhen.