From November 10^th to 15^th and 17^th to 18^th, the NCPA will present a new production of drama The Count of Monte Cristo as a tribute to the 150^th anniversary of the passing of Alexandre Dumas, author of this legendary tale of revenge. On the afternoon of October 21^st, a press conference was held for the debut, where NCPA Vice-president ZHAO Tiechun, playwright YU Rongjun, director WANG Xiaoying, and stage designer LIU Kedong gathered. The press conference was also attended by leading actors YU Yang and SUN Li, actors ZHAO Ling, LUO Wei and SUN Lishi from the NCPA Drama Ensemble, as well as veteran actor WANG Weiguo and young actor FU Pengxu. They shared the drama’s creative intentions and rehearsal process, taking everybody into the spiritual world of The Count of Monte Cristo.

On the afternoon of October 21^st a press conference was held for the debut.
Photo by XIAO Yi

 

In 1846, French novelist and playwright Alexandre Dumas completed the serialization of The Count of Monte Cristo. This year marks the 150^th anniversary of Dumas’ passing. At the press conference, ZHAO Tiechun, Vice-president of NCPA and General Producer of the drama, said: “As early as 2014, the NCPA included The Count of Monte Cristo in its stage production plan, then spent six years to meticulously work on it. This production is a tribute to the French literary giant Alexandre Dumas and a reflection of the continuity and endurance of the NCPA’s classic productions. The creativity of Dumas and the thoughts on humanity conveyed by The Count of Monte Cristo are worthy of being brought to the domestic stage, to allow audiences to get immersed in this great work and provoke their empathy and thoughts.”

NCPA has invited the original creation team of Jane Eyre, the first drama commission of the NCPA. The team members include playwright YU Rongjun, director WANG Xiaoying, stage designer LIU Kedong, lighting designer XING Xin, and other well-known creators from at home and abroad.
Photo by XIAO Yi

In order to bring The Count of Monte Cristo, a masterpiece of the 19^th century, to the stage, the NCPA has invited the original creation team of Jane Eyre, the first drama commission of the NCPA. The team members include playwright YU Rongjun, director WANG Xiaoying, stage designer LIU Kedong, lighting designer XING Xin, and other well-known creators from at home and abroad. After 11 years, they return together to present the great stage production. YU Rongjun has changed the script seven times during the adaptation of The Count of Monte Cristo, in an effort to explore the modern significance in the classic. While retaining the main characters and storyline of the original novel, he creatively split the hero Edmond Dantes into three characters who represent the hero at different stages of life and in different situations. Renowned director WANG Xiaoying has directed such classic dramas as Jane Eyre (2009 NCPA version), Richard III, Copenhagen, The Crucible, and King of Lanling. Commenting on the presentation of The Count of Monte Cristo, he said: “I would sum up this play in four words – legend, romance, fantasy and reality. We want to show in this play the profound and impactful realities of today’s society and our lives.” In addition, the stage design and costume design are also full of ingenuity. The main style of the drama is based on a realistic tone of the first half and imaginative tone of the second half. According to the stage designer LIU Kedong, he used the design concept of the “box” to hold the fragments of Dantes’ life in Marseille. The “box” is also a tomb where the prisoners wrongly put to death are buried and a hole that opens up to hope. The boxes make up the real world as experienced by the hero as well as his spiritual world. Italian costume designer Carla Ricotti also recorded in her design journal, “The costumes of The Count of Monte Cristo hold a dual concept. The costumes used in the first half seek to recreate the look of French dress of the time, both in terms of fabric choice and tailoring techniques, while the costumes used in the second half are more exaggerated in form and texture. They are futuristic, or rather, have a hint of contemporary style.”

The Count of Monte Cristo also boasts a complex diversity of its characters and profound implications of its dialogue.

In addition to its intricate plot, The Count of Monte Cristo also boasts a complex diversity of its characters and profound implications of its dialogue. This time, the new production divides the protagonist Dantes into three roles in three different periods, which are played by two excellent actors. YU Yang, a famous actor of National Theatre of China, will act the role of the young and ambitious first mate of the “Pharaon” in the first half and the hateful Count of Monte Cristo in the second half. ZHAO Ling, a member of the NCPA drama ensemble, will play the role of the No. 34 prisoner who was tortured in the Chateau d’If prison. The two “Dantes” will frequently appear in the same scene, conducting dialogues between ego and alter ego, between the character and his soul, and between the present and the past. They represent the struggle between love and hate and between revenge and redemption. The beautiful, elegant but sad Mercedes, Dantes’ fiancée, will be portrayed by famous actress SUN Li.

In The Count of Monte Cristo, Alexandre Dumas portrayed a number of characters who fit into a specific historical period. YU Rongjun condensed them into the drama and created independent and representative characters while keeping the core plot intact. The roles will be played by several outstanding actors. WANG Weiguo, a veteran of the National Theatre of China, the Jade Emperor in Journey to the West, will act the role of Father Faria, the mentor of Dantes in prison. LUO Wei and SUN Lishi, members of the NCPA drama ensemble, and actor FU Pengxu will respectively play the roles of Fernand Mondego, the aristocratic officer who frames Dantes for imprisonment, Villefort, the prosecutor, and Danglars, the sailor. Besides, veteran actors CHEN Qiang and WANG Guoqiang of the National Theatre of China, and young actors YU Mengchao, CHEN Xiwen, FENG Yang, WANG Yiqing, LIU Beibei, WANG Wenjie and YAO Dingzhi of NCPA Drama Ensemble will also join in.