Theatertreffen in China: Five Easy Pieces stages its 100th performance in Beijing

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This year, Theatertreffen in China has introduced Five Easy Pieces - its 100th performance - to Chinese audiences. It's a play about the Belgian child murderer. Our reporter Qi Jie had the opportunity to film a rehearsal right before a performance at the Beijing Tianqiao Art Center.

For these seven teenage drama actors, this rehearsal is no big deal at all after performing Five Easy Pieces for 99 times. The drama is a heavy subject, but there's no sign of heaviness in their bright eyes. And their body languages indicate nothing but power.

SHIRIN SOJITRAWALLA JURY MEMBER OF THEATERTREFFEN "It's a huge scandal in Europe back then in the 90s, but it's the play about this child murderer, it's about the theater, the meaning of acting on the stage and what is the meaning of playing theater."

In Five Easy Pieces, the dirctor uses the biography of the country's most notoriously shameful criminal to sketch a brief history of Belgium and to reflect on the representation of human feelings on stage. In other words, the director subjects aesthetic appreciation of realism and brutality to a theater study. But it's definitely a confrontational project involving children bewteen eight and 14 years old.

QI JIE BEIJING "Five Easy Pieces, actually it's not that easy to portray that reeks of scandal, especially with teenagers on who 'act' evil and 'experience' fear and 'face' the dark side of human nature. The drama is highly emotive, but could it negatively affect the real psyches of these young performers?"

While insiders' perspectives help ease the worries. The only adult actor in the show is more confident after three years of directing and performing with his teenage colleagues.

PETER SEYNAEVE ACTOR & DIRECTOR ASSISTANT OF FIVE EASY PIECES "I think it's totally ok and safe. For them, it's like a tale, like we're going to play Hamlet, we explain to them how real it is and show them news fragment and documentaries, but all these happened with some psychologists with children."

Will Chinese audiences buy the idea?

AUDIENCE MEMBER "I think, first of all, they can handle it. Secondly, they have their own understanding and thinking about social issues. And it's helpful for their performance and even for their life."

AUDIENCE MEMBER "Chinese parents might protect their children too much, which impedes their understanding about life. Instead, it's more helpful and instructive to encourage children to think, to participate and to perform. And by doing so, they can rediscover themselves and build up stronger courage to overcome difficulties."

Sound a relief and these young performers really demonstrated their strength and confidence on stage. We hope that adults are able to correctly understand children and protect their dreams. After all, these seven teenage actors have NEVER EVER been interviewed since they became part of the Five Easy Pieces in 2016. QIJIE, CGTN, BEIJING.