"It was beyond my hopes. We had never sold fruit before. We knew that people wanted to show their support for us and to return to watch plays at the theater, just as we do," Li Yangduo said. "For all of us, the theater is a land full of imagination and joy."

Recruitment plan

The Drum Tower West Theatre has produced 12 plays in the past six years, including The Pillowman, adapted from award-winning Irish playwright and director Martin McDonagh's eponymous story, and Thunderstorm, written by renowned Chinese playwright Cao Yu.

Last year, nearly 300 performances were staged at the theater, attracting total audiences of about 60,000. Plays produced by the venue also toured nationwide, with more than 60 performances drawing some 60,000 people.

To keep in touch with audiences, Li Yangduo has also launched online programs, including those in which theatergoers share their favorite scripts and read them together. She also plans to recruit actors for her theater, in the hope of preparing new works for when it reopens.

"We think we're doing something unprecedented. What we do now is for the future of the theater. The viral outbreak will end, and we just don't want to abandon our dream," Li Yangduo said.

The government has drawn up plans for small theaters and independent cultural companies to weather the pandemic, such as providing subsidies and allowances to performing arts venues as well as increasing loans to cultural enterprises.

Large venues, such as the National Center for the Performing Arts in Beijing and the Shanghai Grand Theatre, are also connecting with audiences during the outbreak.

According to a report on April 29 by the Beijing Association of Performing Arts, the average operating cost of larger venues in China is about 25 million yuan ($3.53 million) a year. They depend on financial sources such as government support, ticket sales and donations.

On May 2, 100 days after it closed, the Shanghai Grand Theatre launched an online performance featuring the Jin Xing Dance Theatre, China's leading contemporary dance company, the Shanghai Ballet and the Shanghai Chinese Orchestra.

Media platform The Paper quoted Zhang Xiaoding, general manager of the Shanghai Grand Theatre, as saying, "It's heartening to see the warm audience feedback at a time when the performing arts industry remains under enormous pressure as it struggles with the uncertainty of the coronavirus.

"There's still no clear idea of how long the closures will last, but the tradition of going to the theater will never die."

On May 8, the State Council announced that entertainment venues such as cinemas and theaters will be opened gradually, and online appointments will be needed for admission.