Young directors' dramas to be staged during Expo

The Expo is also an opportunity to develop local culture as well as international art exchanges. One example is a festival of stage plays that will take place at the Modern Drama Valley, the headquarters of the Shanghai Cultural Industry Park from May 7th to the 17th.

All the dramas are being directed by artists from Beijing, Shanghai, and Hong Kong.

Nine plays will be staged during the festival, and none of them has been seen in Shanghai before.

Nine plays will be staged during the festival, and none of them has been seen in Shanghai before. Five of the nine plays are original works. Four of the nine directors were born in the 1980s, while four others are non-drama majors.

According to the sponsors, the tenet of the festival is to inspire young dramatists' originality and diversity. Audience members will see a talk show featuring a funny Shanghai accent, and an experimental play with a Hong Kong flavor.

Louis Yu, chief executive of HK Arts Development Council, said, "The world expo should be more about the future. We hope to promote young stage directors to the market. As many foreign guests will come to Shanghai, we'd like to showcase authentic Hong Kong dramas to them."

Other activities include play recitals and interactive drama. Half of the tickets will be given to students and local residents. And the other half are no more than 100 yuan, or around 14 US Dollars.