Venues lay down welcome mat for audiences

Nationwide tour

Director and actor Liu Xiaoyi, who appeared on the show, said: "Within two months, we created 11 new works together, which was beyond our expectations. It is so much fun working in theaters, and thankfully they are now reopening."

The 35-year-old worked as puppetry director for the Chinese version of the stage production War Horse. On the reality show, Liu said that due to the pandemic he had to move his studio from downtown Beijing to the outskirts of the city to save on rent.

Liu's latest theatrical production is the musical Wukong, which premiered in Shanghai on Nov 22. It is touring nationwide, including performances in Shanghai last month and in Nanjing on April 4.

As its director and choreographer, Liu used Sun Wukong, or the Monkey King from the 16th century novel Journey to the West, to tell the story of a rebellious soul, who in Liu's words, "has the spirit of a rocker".

"Theater still caters to smaller audiences in China, unlike pop music or movies. We worked hard to create shows and sell tickets on the streets of Wuzhen, which was an unforgettable and rewarding experience for all of us," Liu said.

"When an audience, who had never watched a play in a theater, decided to give it a try after seeing what we did on the reality show, that really mattered to me."