Kunqu Opera－The Palace of Eternal Youth in Kunming

Date: July 1－8 pm

Venue: Kunming Theatre, Yunnan

Price: 80-960 yuan

The Tang emperor (Li Longji) takes Yang Yuhuan for a concubine and gives her a title of ladyship. As a token of love, the emperor gives Yang a gold hairpin along with a jewel box. Meanwhile, An Lushan, the defeated frontier general, waggers around and shows his ferocity after he bribed Lady Yang's brother, the Prime Minister Yang Guo Cheung, to have his life spared. And then the dissolute emperor has an affaire with Lady Yang's sister, the Duchess of Guo. Lady Yang is dismissed from the imperial palace because of her jealousy. She cuts off a lock of her hair and gives it to the emperor, once more uniting the two lovers.

Contact: 010-6655-0000

Broadway Musicals Wicked

Date: July 1-2－7:30 pm

Venue: Guangzhou Opera House

Price: 100-1,380 yuan

An international company of over 70 cast, crew and musicians will travel to China, with an additional 20 local crew and 7 musicians hired in Shanghai. This "eye-poppingly lavish show" (Sunday Express, UK) includes 300 award-winning costumes, spectacular scenery, lighting and projections and a dazzling array of technical wizardry. Wicked will be performed in English by an international cast including Jacqueline Hughes (Elphaba), Carly Anderson (Glinda), Bradley Jaden (Fiyero), Steven Pinder (The Wizard and Doctor Dillamond), Kim Ismay (Madame Morrible), Iddon Jones (BOQ) and Emily Shaw (Nessarose). At certain performances Elphaba will be played by Jodie Steele.

Contact: 400-610-3721

Rhythm of Youth－Asian Youth Orchestra Concert

Date: July 25－7:30 pm

Venue: NCPA

Price: 80-500 yuan

The 110 members of the Asian Youth Orchestra (AYO) are among the finest young musicians in China, Indonesia, Japan, Korea, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam. Chosen through highly competitive auditions held throughout the region, they are together for six weeks each summer, initially for a three-week Rehearsal Camp in Hong Kong, then for a three-week international concert tour with celebrated conductors and solo artists. Cellists Yo-Yo Ma, Mischa Maisky, Steven Isserlis, Wang Jian and Alisa Weilerstein, are among those who have performed with AYO under the direction of principal conductor James Judd, music director emeritus Sergiu Comissiona, Alexander Schneider, TAN Dun, and the orchestra's co-founders, Yehudi Menuhin and Richard Pontzious. Since its inaugural performances in 1990, the award-winning Orchestra has played some 395 concerts in Asia, Europe, the US and Australia to an audience of more than one million concertgoers.

Contact: 400-610-3721