Now in its 4th year, the ongoing Beijing Fringe Festival is the biggest so far, attracting crowds of Chinese theatre lovers. Homegrown talent rubs shoulders with international performers in shows, ranging from dance and experimental theatre to slapstick musical comedy.

They call themselves "Duel", staging their brand of musical performance like a battle of wits. Both musicians have classical training, but their show is full of comedy routines that have made the show a big hit with the Chinese theatre fans.

"Duel", featuring cellist Laurent Cirade and pianist Paul Staicu, is just one among six acts that Beijing Fringe Festival introduced from the Avignon Festival in France.

Xie Shanshan, festival goer, said, "I think this performance was of a high standard. After watching it, I felt quite excited, because in Beijing we rarely get the opportunity to see this kind of performance."

From modest beginnings, the Beijing Fringe has grown rapidly year on year, with productions ranging from experimental theatre to contemporary dance and musical performances. 11 venues in the Chinese capital are hosting performances from 12 countries around the world, including the Netherlands, the UK and France.

The festival also presents the work of young Chinese playwrights and directors in the 21st century, who are experimenting with new forms of theatre, much like their western counterparts.

Wang Jingjing, actress, said, "It's still not commonplace to see these kinds of performances, but increasingly there are more people involved. For me, I used to work in the media. I was interested in this and now I have become a performer."

Performances are grouped into categories, including "new works", "international works", "dance theatre" and "Beijing operas." They include text readings, workshops and seminars.

The Beijing International Youth Theatre Festival was renamed the Beijing Fringe Festival, inspired in part by the annual Edinburgh Festival Fringe, the world's biggest, which started in the Scottish capital more than 60 years ago.

Meng Jinghui, art director of 4th Beijing Fringe Festival, said, "In the first year, we had 11 directors and 11 plays. In the fourth year, this year, we have 58 directors and 58 plays. It's getting bigger and bigger, and we are also becoming more international. At the same time, there's more involvement from the younger Chinese generation and more of their creative input. They are also represented on this platform and have become more confident."

With the Festival's reputation spreading around via the Internet, more people from outside the capital are travelling to attend the performances, as well as calling for similar events in other cities.

Meng says he likes to push the boundaries in all the works that he is involved in, and says he sees the theatre as a meeting place for architecture, music, dance, literature, acrobatics, drama and other art forms.

The 4th Beijing Fringe Festival started on September 5th at the National Center for the Performing Arts in Beijing and runs until September 25th.

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