Six famous Peking Opera performers are coming out of retirement to reprise their roles in the modern classic the Red Lantern, which debuted at the Beijing People's Theatre in 1964.

The original cast from the China Peking Opera Troupe includes Liu Changyu, the youngest performer at 60 years, and Yuan Shihai, the oldest at 86.

"The performance should earn a place in the Guinness Book of Records because of the age of the artists," said Wu Jiang, president of the China Peking Opera Troupe, over the weekend.

The group is the most influential Peking Opera troupe in the country. It was established in 1955 and flourished under its first director Mei Lanfang.

"It has been my cherished desire for a dozen years to gather all the old cast to perform the Red Lantern again for theatre fans," said Yuan.

As one of the eight modern productions popular from 1964 to 1976, the play tells the story of a railway working family which devotes itself to fighting the Japanese invasion.

The family attempts to send an important message to the guerrillas hiding in the mountains.

The grandmother and father are killed by the Japanese, before the granddaughter finally succeeds in delivering the message.

(China Daily 05/21/2001)