TEATRUL CHINEZ ÎN SECOLUL XXI: TREI COMEDII

The three plays included in this anthology are emblematic of 21st-century Chinese comedy. At the Buddha (2003) by Guo Shixing, Comedies from the Qin Kingdom (2017) by Li Jing, and Honor of Chiang Kai-shek (2012) by Wen Fangyi create a kaleidoscopic, serious, yet humorous image of the contemporary Chinese world in constant dialogue with its own past. Oscillating between historical comedy, critical fiction, and brisk realism, the three plays articulate sharp, subversive, and sociopolitically meaningful commentary on Chinese social realities in today’s China. Despite the committed air with which they deal with pressing social issues, the three comedies have enjoyed enormous success on the Chinese theatrical scene.