Original Stage Play Adapted from Esteemed Classic
Dignity and Honour Prevail in Chaotic Times
The thunder of cannons at Marco Polo Bridge in 1937 ignited the full-scale war between China and Japan, shattering the peace of Beiping’s Little Sheep Fold Hutong.
Amidst the chaos, the lives of hardworking civilians deteriorate daily: Mr. Cui the rickshaw boy, operatic amateur couple Mr. and Mrs. Wen, helpful Li Siye, and Cheng Changshun who is interdependent with his grandmother – all gradually lose basic dignity and hope through their disparate sufferings. The reclusive Poet Qian, indifferent to fame and fortune, sees his family destroyed by the war. This tragedy strips away his scholarly passivity, forging him into an unyielding fighter.
In stark contrast, opportunists thrive in the chaos. Guan Xiaohe and his wife Dachibao prosper spectacularly, though their pursuits fracture family approval.
The Qi family, the Hutong’s most law-abiding and peace-loving household, finds its members taking different stances as the crisis intensifies. Old Master Qi’s third grandson Qi Ruiquan joins the War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression and vanishes without word; his second grandson Qi Ruifeng, spurred by his wife, secures a lucrative post in the puppet government; his eldest grandson Qi Ruixuan, an English teacher in middle school, wrestles between filial duty and patriotism while supporting the entire family with his devoted wife Yunmei. Old Master Qi’s lifelong aspirations hang in the balance: Can he preserve his ideal of a four-generation household? Will he live to see his eightieth birthday?
Director: Tian Qinxin