CCTV9英语新闻：Chinese troupe adapts 'A Midsummer Night's Dream'（在线收听）

Shakespeare's "rude mechanicals" of "A Midsummer Night's Dream" are speaking in the Shanghai dialect! It's one of the comic devices employed by the Shanghai Farce Troupe as they present a Chinese-language version of the original. The play also features other local elements, including traditional Chinese musical instruments. 

The comedy follows the story of four lovers and a group of amateur actors and their adventures with woodland fairies and a duke and duchess. The cast is entirely Chinese, and they will also play traditional instruments like the erhu and flute to add a Chinese flavor to this more than 400-year-old English play.

It's one of the comic devices employed by the Shanghai Farce Troupe as they present a Chinese-language version of the original.

"I will play the role of a woman warrior and a fairy in the first two acts. I need to do both actions and play the instrument, which is very challenging," said Chen Qi, actress.

Shanghai Farce Troupe chose to present the famous comedy and cooperated with British director Paul Stebbings, who had a translator help communicate his ideas to the actors. 

"In the original, the bad actors, the amateur actors were putting on the play for the duke from Shakespeare's own area, Warwickshire. So we've transferred them to Shanghai, so they are drinking Tsingtao and singing Shanghai songs in that scene, and they will use more Shanghainese dialect than the aristocratic characters or fairies," said Paul Stebbings, artistic director of TNT theater.

The comedy follows the story of four lovers and a group of amateur actors and their adventures with woodland fairies and a duke and duchess.

"We've learned a lot from the director, especially in body-gesture training. For instance, before, we performed instant body movements only in some scenes. But this time, our body movements are more frequent and quicker," said Qian Cheng, vice president of SH Farce Troupe.

The drama will be staged from May the 21st to the 27th at the Shanghai Lyceum Theater. Tickets will range from 80 yuan to 380 yuan.