A celebration of the fifth anniversary of a musical play “Impression – Da Hong Pao” was held in Wuyishan Mountain, a famous scenic resort in Fujian province, on Jan 18.

A scene with tea farmers making Da Hong Pao tea. [Photo provided to China Daily]

The musical play is directed by famous Chinese director Zhang Yimo, with the theme of presenting tea culture.

The play advocates a healthy and orderly lifestyle and emphasizes the importance of striking a proper balance between work and rest in modern society. It has now become a new cultural brand in the city.

The stage for the landscape performance is composed of a 360-degree rotating auditorium with two of Wuyishan’s famous peaks – the King of Peak and Yunv Peak – in the background. It is the largest natural rotation theater in the world.

The whole performance lasts for about 75 minutes with a cast of some 300 performers, all of whom are local tea farmers.

The play was officially presented in Jan 2010. So far, it has been performed on 1,888 ocasions and has attracted a total of over 2.4 million people, bringing in more than 300 million yuan ($ 48 million) sales revenue for the city.

“In Jan 2014, we made some adaptations to the play and added more interaction between the audience and the performers,” said Zheng Bin, manager of the Impression Da Hong Pao Inc., adding that the new version has won high appreciation and enjoyed more popularity.

“There will be an adjourning period from Jan 18 to Feb 19 of the play. To meet the expectations of the audience, the plots and lines of ‘Impression – Da Hong Pao’ will keep up with the times,” he said.

By Lu Ting from China Daily Fujian Bureau