WEI Haimin is a Peking Opera artist. She is not only a visiting professor at Shanghai Theatre Academy, but also a leading artist of GuoGuang Opera Company. Growing up in Taiwan, WEI studied under QIN Huifen, ZHOU Mingxin, BAO Youdie, CHEN Yongling, TONG Zhiling and other masters. In 1991, WEI joined the third generation of MEI School, and became the first disciple of Mr. MEI Baojiu. For decades, she remained committed to MEI School Peking Opera Art and has demonstrated mastery in such repertoires as The Banquet of the Concubine, Farewell My Concubine, MU Guiying Takes Command and Happiness Neither in Life Nor in Death.

Since the mid 20^th century, she has carried out artistic innovations. As the soul of Taiwan-based “New Aesthetics of Peking Opera,” she is the starring member of Haiguang Peking Opera Troupe, Shenglan Theatre Company, Contemporary Legend Theatre and GuoGuang Opera Company. She has been performing in more than 200 repertoires involved in a wide range of genres, roles and art styles. She is skillful in traditional and new works. Her representative works mainly include The Golden Cangue, WANG Xifeng, The Kingdom of Desire, Beauty of the Ancient Loulan Castle, MENG Xiaodong, etc. In 2009, she starred in a one-man perforamce Orlando directed by avant-garde dramatist Robert Wilson.

WEI has captured numerous awards in her lifetime. She is not only the first Chinese woman awarded with “Ten Outstanding Young Persons of the World”, but also won Taiwan’s highest-level literary and artistic award twice. She has won such awards as The 13^th Chinese Drama Plum Performance Award, Leading Performer Award of the 15^th Shanghai Magnolia Drama Performance Art, The 19^th Golden Melody Awards, The 11^th Global Chinese Culture & Arts Award and Chinese Cultural Figures for Year of 2010. She has led delegations or starred in many performances at the Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts, Royal National Theatre in London, Avignon Festival (France), Goldener Saal Wiener Musikverein and Santiago Arts Festival (Spain). She has served as Chairman of Taiwan Peking Opera Association for a long time. She publishes three monographs Flowing Sleeves and Rouge, Actress in Opera and Skeleton and Golden Cangue.

CAI Zhengren is a Kunqu Opera artist, who is reputed as “Little YU Zhenfei”. In 1961, he graduated from the First Kunqu Opera Performer Class of Shanghai Theatre Arts School. He is proficient in young male roles, such as high-ranking male roles. He was taught by Peking Opera and Kunqu Opera art masters YU Zhenfei, SHEN Chuanzhi, ZHOU Chuanying and other renowned artists. CAI is characterized by a mellow and brilliant voice, full of stamina, high-pitched tunes and sincere emotions. His representative repertoires include Striking the Bell and Parting in Palace, Burying the Beauty in a Coup, Receiving and Crying for Portrait, The Drunken Poet LI Bai, Eight Yang Characters, Horse Trader, Reunion with Mother again and Pretended Jealousness, etc. He stars in such full-length works as Palace of Eternal Life, Tale of the Pipa, The Peony Pavilion, Madam White Snake, Anecdotes of Kite, Series of Stratagems, BAN Zhao, Peach Blossom Fan, etc. He shapes up different roles in the category of Official Junior Male, Scarf Junior Male, Poor Junior Male and Pheasant Feather Junior Male in Kunqu Opera.

In 1986, CAI Zhengren won the 4^th Plum Performance Award in recognition of top-grade performance in Pretended Jealousness, Reunion with Mother again, and other repertoires. In 1989, CAI starred in The Palace of Eternal Youth and won Outstanding Achievement Award of Shanghai Culture and Art Festival. In 1993, he starred in the Kunqu Opera work Peony Pavilion and won Leading Performer Award of Shanghai Magnolia Drama Performance Art. He is a winner of Honorary Performance Award of the 1^st China Kunqu Opera Art Festival and 1^st Baosteel Elegant Art Award. In June 2009, he won Special Honor Award of the 4^th China Kunqu Opera Art Festival for starring in heavyweight Kunqu Opera work The Palace of Eternal Youth.

CAI has performed and given lectures in Hong Kong, Macao, Taiwan, Japan, the United States, Germany, Singapore and other countries and regions.

CAI is a member of the 8^th, the 9^th and the 10^th National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference, Member of Kunqu Opera Revitalization Steering Committee under Ministry of Culture, Executive Director of China Kunqu Opera Research Association, Executive Director of Chinese Opera Performance Society, Director of China Theatre Association, Vice Chairman of Shanghai Dramatists Association, Member of Shanghai Federation of Literary and Art Circles, Adviser to Shanghai Art Education Committee, Adjunct Professor of College of Liberal Arts, Shanghai University, and Deputy Director and Research Office Head of Shanghai Peking Opera and Kunqu Opera Art Development Advisory Committee. He served as President of Shanghai Kunqu Opera Troupe.