For the first time, China and Myanmar are jointly producing an epic TV series featuring a legendary story dating back to the Tang dynasty (AD 618-907) and linking the two countries.

The Dancing Girl from the Pyu Kingdom, is the tale of a long, adventurous journey a prince in the old kingdom of Myanmar made to China's then capital, Chang'an, in 802 AD. He was accompanied by a famed dance troupe that performed for the Chinese emperor.

The historical background involves how the southern Silk Road promoted exchanges between civilizations.

Lin Gengxin, a new Chinese TV heartthrob, plays the prince who falls in love with a female thief played by actress Choo Ja-hyun from South Korea.

Filming began in February in Ruili, Yunnan province, one of China's principal border cities with Myanmar. The cast then moved to Bagan, an ancient city in Myanmar.

Although it is not easy to work with a multilingual cast, Yu Rongguang, the Chinese director of the series, said it is good practice.

"Our script will be in three languages: Chinese, the Myanmar language and English," he said.

The epic series is expected to be shown toward the end of the year.

Qin Zhongwei

(China Daily 06/18/2013 page10)