Peking Opera is a cultural symbol of China. But Peking Opera actors are far less famous than pop stars and they earn only a fraction of the money. NPC deputy Wang Rongrong is an opera star who has worked tirelessly to preserve this cultural heritage.

Wang Rongrong rarely has much time to rest, especially since she became the head of the Beijing Peking Opera Troupe.

But Wang is always very pleasant, and doesn't display signs of stress.

She says the tough situation facing Peking Opera forces the troupe to work much harder than other artists.

NPC deputy Wang Rongrong said, "You would never guess how much an ordinary Peking Opera actor earns per month, it's just several hundred yuan. How would you feel if you earned that amount after performing for ten years? "

Wang tells a reporter that she would have been a much more relaxed person if she had not taken the position of head of the troupe.

Now she works more but earns less, as she has to think of the whole troupe, and not only herself.

NPC deputy Wang Rongrong said, "The only thing I can do is to keep performing. After years of efforts our troupe now has plenty of performances every year. But there are no more than 10 troupes like us in the entire country. I have been appealing for years especially at the NPC session for increased respect of Peking Opera. It has worked. And I am very happy that we are so popular at universities. And Peking Opera is now included as part of the curricula in middle schools.

(CCTV March 12, 2009)