STAGE
The brilliant Croatian pianist Dejan Lazic will give a recital of Chopin, Scarlatti and Bartok at the Forbidden City Concert Hall on Sept 28.
The New York Times has hailed his music as "fresh, spontaneous and impassioned". Born in 1978 in Croatia, Lazic began studying at age six with his pianist mother and made his concert debut at nine, began composing at ten, and shows a musical intelligence and sensitivity rarely seen in former prodigies.
7:30 pm, Sept 28
Inside Zhongshan Park
5166-4511 5123-3866
The Peony Pavilion, the classic Kunqu Opera, is on stage at the Imperial Granary, a perfect venue. The Imperial Granary was rebuilt in the Ming Dynasty (1368-1644) 600 years ago, exactly the time the Kunqu Opera was written.
In order to further emphasize the origins of the Granary and the opera, the entire show will take place without the benefit of electricity.
Open to individuals on Friday & Saturday; Group reservation available from Sunday to Thursday
6409-6477/6499
22 Dongsi Shitiao, Dongcheng District
380-1,980 yuan, including Royal Peking Roast Duck Buffet
The Chinese Acrobatics Group, established in 1950, has toured more than 80 countries, won numerous international awards and helped foster friendships between China and other nations. Its performance includes traditional acrobatics, a circus show, magic, old Beijing folk plays and more. The show blends music, dance, local opera and martial arts.
7:30 pm, daily
Tiandi Theater, Dongsi Shitiao, 100 m north of Poly Theater, Chaoyang District
6416-9893
CONCERTS
On Oct 4 and 5, two special concerts will be given at Haidian Theater.
Sun Guoqing, the popular pop singer and talk show host and Liu Jian, the American-Chinese conductor, will take turns to conduct the Beijing New Philharmonic Orchestra to play well-known classical pieces by Beethoven, Mozart and Tchaikovsky and Chinese folk music. In between the musical segments, Sun will teach the audience to sing O Sole Mio and also present a humorous take on how to conduct an orchestra.
The concert aims to provide an easy approach to classic music which most people view as serious stuff.
7:30 pm, Oct 4, 5
28 Zhongguancun Street
4007079999 5815-1155
The acclaimed French pianist Pascal Roge will give a recital featuring an all-French program at the Forbidden City Concert Hall on Sept 30.
The Paris-born Roge exemplifies the finest in French pianism; his playing of Poulenc, Satie, Faur and Ravel in particular is characterized by elegance, beauty and delicate phrasing - his name is synonymous with the best playing of French repertory in the world today.
He has won many prestigious awards including two Gramophone Awards, a Grand Prix du Disque and an Edison award for his interpretations of the Ravel and Saint-Saens concertos.
He has performed in almost every major concert hall in the world. Some of the orchestras he has appeared with include the Philadelphia Orchestra, Montreal Symphony, l'Orchestre de Paris, l'Orchestre National de Radio France, the Concertgebouw Amsterdam, the NHK Symphony Orchestra Tokyo, Vienna Symphony Orchestra and all the major London orchestras.
7:30 pm, Sept 30
Inside the Zhongshan Park
5166-4511 5123-3866
Exhibitions
The Grand Cultural Relics Exhibition at the Capital Museum, which is subdivided into five shows, will be extended until 9 pm during October 3-5.
Hundreds of exhibits, the most precious items from more than 70 museums in 27 provinces around China, have attracted 500,000 visitors since its debut in July.
9 am-5 pm, until Oct 14; 9 am-9 pm, Oct 3-5
Capital Museum, 16 Fuxingmenwai Dajie, Xicheng District
6337-0491
Japanese calligrapher Yu-Ichi's unique technique of expression has caught attention in Japan and the Western art world alike. His works were highly praised by Herbert Read, an authority among art critics, at the St. Paul International Art Exhibition in 1957. Today Art Museum will display Yu-Ichi's 65 classic calligraphic works, all provided by Masaomi Unagami, a Japanese art critic who has compiled The Complete Works of Yu-Ichi. The exhibition will also feature a documentary film, Thirty Years of Practice with Poor Cultivation, which won an award at the Italian Documentary Film Festival.
10 am-5 pm, Sept 28-Oct 17
32 Baiziwan Lu, Chaoyang District
5876-0600
The Today Art Student Annual Awards offers a platform for art students to display their talent to a broader audience. Many participants have won the recognition of the art world through this event since 2006. At this year's show, participants will show their creativity in cheering for China and the Olympic Games.
10 am-5 pm, Sept 27-Oct 12
32 Baiziwan Lu, Chaoyang District
5876-0600
Love can come at the most unexpected moment and one day, slip away without a trace, leaving an unforgettable impression. Many people love youth and beauty, yet there is only one person who will love the pilgrims' soul, cherish the wrinkles on the face, when age has eroded the external beauty. In Xie Ye's In the Name of Roses oil series, the faded rose is like the distant past, spreading its weak fragrance, whispering that love can be helpless, fragile and even painful.
1-8 pm (Sunday); 10 am-8 pm (Monday to Wednesday); 8 am-8 pm (Thursday); 9 am-7 pm (Friday); 10 am-8 pm (Saturday), Sept 26-Oct 6
Shop 2 of Beijing Central Art Gallery, Kempinski Hotel, 50 Liangmaqiao Lu, Chaoyang District
6465-1396
This photographic show unfolds Spanish sports history and world champions since 1992 Barcelona Olympics. The exhibits are chosen from the collection of Spanish EFE News Agency taken around the world.
10 am-5 pm, until Sept 28
Cervantes Institute, A1 Gongti Nanlu, Chaoyang District
5879-9666
Joint exhibition Beyond Reminiscence: Chinese Tradition Expressed in Contemporary Art features art works by 12 contemporary artists. It shows their innovation in iconology, technique and medium. On display are oil paintings by Liu Wei, Ye Yongqing and Zheng Zaidong; ink and wash by Xu longsen; landscape by Gu Wenda and Bai Luoyi; as well as video works by Ma Wenyou.
10 am-10 pm, until Sept 28
Beijing Center for Arts, 23 Qianmen Dongdajie
6559-8008
Entitled 2D/3D: Negotiating Visual Languages, the group show includes photograph, video, installation, and multi-media art works. Each artist has shown his distinctive comprehension through the works in 2D and 3D forms.
10 am-5 pm, until Sept 28
PKM Gallery Beijing, C46 Art Zone, Caochangdi, Chaoyang District
8456-7429
New York based artist Patty Chang's video project, Touch Would, centers on the concept of translation and mistranslation. Chang explores notions of public and private space, staged performance, and linguistic misunderstanding between different cultures. Shot in Beijing and co-produced by the Arrow Factory, the video work is a two-channel program with words and actions moving around beyond consciousness.
10 am-5 pm, until Sept 29
Arrow Factory, 38 Jianchang Hutong, Dongcheng District
Zhang Ge creates landscapes and figure paintings on specially-designed porcelain works. Named Made on Earth, the combined works present both concrete and abstract content.
9 am-6 pm, until Sept 29
Artist Village Gallery, 1 North of Rencun, Songzhuang, Tongzhou District
6959-8343
This exhibition has invited 66 contemporary Chinese artists and will show their 300 works. Entitled Assembling under the Five Rings, it conveys the various explorations and pursuits of contemporary Chinese artists. From the show, visitors can review the evolution of contemporary Chinese art: from 85 modern art trends to multiple perspective of recent years, from Yuanmingyuan to the 798 Art Zone.
10 am-5 pm, until Sept 30
The Legend, 8 Anli Lu, Chaoyang District
(China Daily September 26, 2008)
