About Teahouse

Teahouse was written in 1956 by Lao She, a giant of Chinese literature. Teahouse depicts the life of the masses over an entire half century of Chinese history. The play contains cultural and social commentary important to its time, and historically. It is both a classical and a contemporary theatre work.

This entirely new Teahouse is directed by Meng Jinghui, with very well-known actor Wen Zhang in the leading role. For this production, Meng Jinghui has chosen four unique young directors as his main actors. They will follow Meng Jinghui throughout the creative journey of creating the show. A cooperative work between China and Germany, Teahouse has extended an invitation to Sebastian Kaiser, a highly respected dramaturg in Germany. A production created to show respect for this theatre heritage, this is a salute to Lao She.

A work with the avant-garde spirit of Meng Jinghui, joined with Lao She’s classic Teahouse, is sure to be an aesthetic adventure of international importance.

About Meng Jinghui

Meng Jinghui is the most influential and celebrated Chinese theatre director in the world.  

He has become the touchstone for contemporary play production with his incisive wit and critical style, and brought new vitality to the theatre. His extraordinary creativity and eclectic artistic style have become veritable cultural phenomena. Since the 1990s, he has put more than 40 works on stage. Every piece of his theatre work evokes a strong reaction from the public.

His representative stage productions include: Rhinoceros in Love, Two Dogs, To Live, Linchuan Four Dreams, Amber, A Letter From A Woman Unknown, The Murder of Hanging Garden, Accidental Death of an Anarchist, I Love XXX, Guns Lies and Roses, Mermaid in the Backwater, He Had Two Pistols with Black and White Eyes, Bonjour Tristesse, The Bedbug, The Good Person of Sichuan, Soft, Head without Tail, and Nine and Half Love.

As a director, Meng Jinghui has been widely recognized in international theatre circles, and his works have been performed in a range of international arts festivals. His works have also toured in many countries, including Australia, Germany, France, Italy, New Zealand, Japan, England, Brazil, Egypt and so on.

Meng not only creates new works; he is also the founder and the Artistic Director of the Beijing Fringe Festival, Hangzhou Contemporary Theatre Festival, Shenzhen Biennale Theatre Festival and the Beijing Bee Hive Theatre, as well as co-founder of the Wuzhen Theatre Festival.

About Meng Theatre Studio

Meng Theatre Studio was established in 1997. Its creative foundation has always been the principal of diversification and the spirit of the avant-garde. On this basis, the Meng Theatre Studio has presented more than 40 pieces of contemporary theatre work—works which have been at the forefront of Chinese theatre art. Among them, Rhinoceros in Love is known as "the bible of contemporary love," and has been played more than 2,500 times.

At the same time, Meng Theatre Studio has organized hundreds of lectures, exhibitions, concerts, workshops and more to support young artists. The Meng Theatre Studio is not only focused on creating theatre works, but also aims to bring the Chinese theatre art to a new level, to a new age.