Scenes from Of Mice and Men and Coriolanus. They are among the 10 shows of Britain's NT Live screening in Beijing and Shanghai through September. [Photo/China Daily]

"NT Live's stream in China is a unique opportunity for Chinese people to experience world-class theater productions at home," says Zhou Yuyuan, president of the National Theater of China.

"It has become a trend to watch the live broadcast of theater," says Li Dong, producer of National Theater of China, who is in charge of the project.

"Not everyone has a theater on their doorstep. And in a single evening, a play can only be performed for hundreds of people. Even an entire run of a show in a venue can only be performed for thousands of people. But the live stream provides an opportunity to reach a much wider audience," Li says.

The Metropolitan Opera started to run The Met Opera: Live in HD in 2006. The performances are transmitted in high-definition video via satellite from the Metropolitan Opera in New York City to movie theaters in the US and other parts of the world.

NT Live launched in June 2009 and has broadcast more than 20 of the best British theater productions live from the National Theater of Britain. Some 3.5 million people in more than 1,100 venues around the world have enjoyed an NT Live broadcast.

The 10 productions that are screened in cinemas in Beijing and Shanghai reflect the breadth of the work NT Live broadcasts, including productions from London's West End, The Donmar Warehouse, Broadway in the US and of course, the National Theater in London.

Frankenstein, which is one of the 10 productions, was a sellout hit at the National Theater in 2011. Director Danny Boyle's well-known works include the films Trainspotting and the Oscar-winning Slumdog Millionaire and the opening ceremony of London 2012 Olympics.