19 August 2012 (Sun) 7:30pm
Goddess of the Luo River
Towards the end of the Eastern Han dynasty, China is split into three kingdoms. Regent for the young emperor, Cao Cao gains control of the feudal lords. His third son, Zhi, a handsome and talented young man, is in love with the gifted beauty Zhen Mi. However, Cao makes Zhi marry another girl. Meanwhile, rewarding his triumphant return from war, Cao allows Pi, his eldest son, to pick his wife. Bent on taking away his younger brother’s love, Pi asks his father for permission to marry Mi. On the wedding night, the drunken Pi tells Mi that he is afraid that Zhi would succeed his father and has been trying to kill Zhi. Astonished, Mi writes a letter to alert Zhi. Because of Pi’s machinations, Zhi is exiled to Linzi. Eventually, Cao dies of illness and Pi succeeds his father. Pi begins to purge dissidents. He makes Mi write a letter to lure Zhi to the capital. Zhi insists on returning to meet Mi. At the meeting of the two, Pi orders Zhi to compose a poem entitled “Brothers” within seven walking steps. Looking at Mi and remembering their past love, Zhi accomplishes the challenging task. Bowing to his talent, Pi allows his brother to return to Linzi. As Pi repents his misdeeds, Mi leaves on the pretext of observing the seasonal ritual in the mountain and throws herself into the Luo River.
30 August 2012 (Thu) 7:30pm
Time to Go Home
Young general Wen Pingsheng and his wife, Pinniang, are deeply in love with each other. Jealous of the couple’s love, Wen’s cousins conspire with a doctor and claim that the wife has caught an incurable disease. Pingsheng is the only son in the family, so his mother dislikes Pinniang for being barren and is also afraid that her son might contract the disease. Pingsheng’s mother forces her daughter-in-law to live alone on the premise of letting her recover from her disease, and forbids her son to visit. As he is about to go to battle, Wen visits his wife at night but is caught and scolded by his mother. After he leaves home, the mother gives Pinniang a maid and some gold to keep her from ever returning, and then tells her son that his wife has died. Aghast at the news, Pingsheng wants to die on the battlefield but survives numerous combats and goes home. As he weeps at Pinniang’s tomb, his touched wife comes out to meet him. Moved by their undying love and ashamed of their misdeeds, the cousins admit to their wrongdoing. In the end, the mother agrees to the reunion of the couple.
31 August 2012 (Fri) 7:30pm
Merciless Sword Under Merciful Heaven
Wei Chonghui is a descendant of General Han Xin. After Empress Lu gives the order to exterminate the Han clan, members of the clan change their family name to Wei and disperse. Hidden in a bamboo forest, a young son of the clan, Chonghui, is raised by Gui. Lu Huailiang is ordered by the empress to persecute Han Xin’s decendants; however, Lu’s daughter Daoci and Chonghui have had an innocent affection for each other since childhood, not knowing the feud between the Weis and the Lus. One day, the patriarch of the Wei clan, Yuchang, arrives and tells Chonghui about his family. Chonghui receives from Yuchang the Merciless Sword as well as the task of reviving and reuniting his clan. The clan raises troops and attacks Lu’s camp; Lu and the Prince of Ji join together to resist the assault. The prince forces Daoci, the daughter of Lu, to infiltrate the enemy’s camp on the pretext of pursuing peace to wait for a chance to assassinate the commander. When they recognize each other in the camp, Chonghui and Daoci find themselves torn between their families’ feud and their own love. For the sake of Daoci, Chonghui agrees to surrender to the prince. The prince intends to eliminate the troops of the Weis and the Lus. Refusing to surrender, Gui leads the Wei troops against the prince, only to be defeated. Fortunately, Gui is rescued by Chonghui. Realizing his mistake, Lu, with the Weis, attacks and kills the prince. Gui is seriously wounded, but agrees to a marriage between Chonghui and Daoci before she dies. The Weis and the Lus are reconciled at last.
Performers:
Lung Koon-tin, Wan Fei-yin, Chan Hung-chun, Lui Hung-kwong (31/8), Lai Yiu-wei (19&30/8), Cheng Wing-mui (30-31/8), Cheng Nga-kai (19/8), Yuen Siu-fai |
