The Shanghai Ballet has performed The White-Haired Girl more than 1,700 times at home and abroad. (Photo : The Atlantic)
A 3D film version of one of China's most popular revolutionary-themed musicals, The White-Haired Girl, was released nationwide last March 25.
Now that it is in 3D, director Hou Keming that the film will be more "accessible to young audiences and the scenes will be even more realistic."
Hou added that the ballet will incite strong feelings in the audience and help them to better understand the beauty of stage arts.
The film, spanning two years in creation, was shot in over 15 locations in Guangzhou. Hou said that this is what made the film innovative, apart from the 600 special effects used.
The White-Haired Girl ballet was created by the Shanghai Ballet in 1964 and premiered in the succeeding year. In 2015, as an anniversary special, the Shanghai Ballet brought it back to the stage. Since its conception, the piece has been shown many times in operas and films. The Shanghai Ballet has also performed the ballet more than 1,700 times, both in China and abroad.
The White-Haired Girl's story is based on Chinese legends revolving around the struggles of female peasants in the 1920s. The story primarily focuses on Xi'er, the daughter of a poor farmer, who was sold to a landlord to pay off the family's debts. After much suffering, she runs away deep into the mountains, where she lived for many years without sufficient food.
The story also tells of her striving to achieve happiness despite trials. Her hair turns white and she becomes known as the "white-haired goddess" before being rescued by the Red Army.
