A Broadway in Beijing?

Beijing may soon have a national theater hub, along the lines of New York's Broadway or London's West End.

In the first moves toward this, the Theater Season of Urban Youth across the Straits, will present seven theater works by artists from both the Chinese mainland and Taiwan from May 24 through Aug 23. They will be staged in different venues, including Oriental Pioneer Theater, Fengchao Theater and Star Live.

The shows will include National Theater Company director Meng Jinghui's first musical Murder Case of the Hanging Garden, independent director Huang Ying's drama To Be Continued and Taiwan folk rock band Hohak's music theater Rice and Love.

"We hope this three-month long event will facilitate an exchange of theater works across the Strait," says Yang Qianwu, vice-chairman of the Beijing Dramatists' Association.

One of the highlights of the event is Meng's Murder Case of the Hanging Garden. Although music has played an important role in many of his works, Meng - a name popular with Chinese theater-goers - says this is the first time he will be telling a story through music.

"I'm still not sure about the final form of my musical, but it will be something different from Broadway," says Meng. "It would be stupid for a Chinese director to follow the Broadway model."