The third Laoshe Theater Festival marked Chinese novelist Lao She's 120th birthday with a fittingly dramatic celebration at the Tianqiao Performing Arts Center on Thursday. The guest of honor, Shakespeare's Globe, lifted the festival's curtains with the bard's comedy "Twelfth Night." 

It's a birthday party both Lao She and his English counterpart William Shakespeare would have enjoyed, but what's more, they most likely would have also enjoyed each other's company and works. 

The chef-d'oeuvre in the spotlight tonight is the "Twelfth Night" by Shakespeare. A series of mistaken identity, misunderstanding, and shenanigans whimsically punctuated with musical acts. And did I mention abundance of humor? 

"You mentioned that Laoshe is known for his wit, racy language and humor. Both plays are very witty, the language is kind of naughty," Mogali Masuku who plays Maria in the play told me.

That's because Lao She was deeply inspired by Charle Dickens, who in turn was greatly influenced by Shakespeare! 

"I play a character called Feste who is a fool. So he is a hired, paid-for whit within the society Shakespeare would've been operating at the time. And Feste's role is to try to subvert some of the politics through the play using humor specifically, so people don't quite understand what's going on with them," actress Natasha Magigi said, "so we look at ways of engaging with the audience and say 'I know what's going on, you know what's going on, but they don't know.'"

What we do know is that both Lao She and possibly Shakespeare served as school masters before their writing careers took off, where they might have picked up their humor and racy language. 

Whereas Lao She wrote his first novel after moving to London in 1924, also in London, the cradle of so many illuminati, Shakespeare became an established dramatist by 1592.  

Traveling from London this time, Shakespeare's Globe will also be performing Comedy of Errors from its exhilarating repertoires at the festival, and where you're sure to discover more about the Chinese novelist. 

The third edition of the Laoshe Theater Festival features 12 plays, 26 performances between September 19 and November 23 at Beijing's Tianqiao Performing Arts Center.