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THE LION KING ENJOYED A ROARING SUCCESS in Shanghai, China's most Westernised city. The musical, performed in English with Chinese subtitles, grossed more than 70 million yuan over its three-month run. -- PHOTO: IMAGES.CHINA.CN
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BEIJING - WHILE some of her friends might blow 1,000 yuan (S$195) on a Mandopop concert, Shanghai advertising executive Christina Fu prefers to spend the money on a ticket to a Broadway musical or ballet instead.
Once unfamiliar to ordinary Chinese, top Western arts acts are now flocking to China's major cities, banking on audiences willing and happy to pay top dollar for more cosmopolitan and highbrow entertainment.
To bring in such productions, global impresarios have begun tying up with Chinese companies.
The latest is a joint venture between leading British producer of musicals Cameron Mackintosh and China Arts and Entertainment Group, an agency affiliated with the country's Ministry of Culture.
As part of the deal, sealed in Beijing last month, a Chinese-language version of Les Miserables will premiere in the capital late next year.
'It used to be rare to have world-renowned productions coming to China, but now I am spoilt for choice,' Ms Fu told The Sunday Times.
As impresarios tap into China's huge market, Broadway musicals have become a hot ticket because of their potential mass appeal.
Performed in English with Chinese subtitles, Mamma Mia! and The Lion King were huge hits in Shanghai, China's most Westernised city.
The Lion King ran for three months last year and grossed more than 70 million yuan. Mamma Mia! made nearly as much there in its month-long July run, which drew more than 50,000 people.
The Abba-inspired pop musical then went on to Beijing, where it sold over 80 per cent of its tickets.
The big names of less commercial art forms such as modern dance and classical music are also making a beeline for China.
German contemporary dance legend Pina Bausch performed in Beijing last month, while the star-studded line-up at the ongoing Beijing Music Festival includes pianist Lang Lang, conductor Daniel Barenboim and violinist Nigel Kennedy.
'There is now a select group of Chinese audiences who are quite sophisticated. They know who the established names are,' said festival programme director Lai Shuchun.
The intricacies of China's bureaucracy were once a huge hurdle for foreign acts, but Beijing now wants to create a more international image ahead of hosting the Olympic Games next year, industry insiders said.
Two years ago, the Ministry of Culture began allowing foreign investment in the entertainment industry, and there is now a rush to build state-of-the-art performance venues all over the country.
'In five to 10 years, I hope Beijing and Shanghai will become the (world's) third or fourth musical market, after New York and London,' Assistant Minister of Culture Ding Wei recently said.
Industry figures caution against over-optimism, saying musicals and other Western art forms still lack wide appeal outside of Shanghai.
'In some cities in China, you still have people with no idea what a musical is,' said Ms Chen Jixin, whose company Beijing Oriental Broadway is currently taking the Broadway musical 42nd Street around the country.
'We're still laying a foundation for the appreciation of musicals. We're not at the stage where you can talk profits yet,' she told The Sunday Times.
clare@sph.com.sg
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