A still of "Jin da ban de zui hou yi ye," also known as "The Last Night of Madame Chin," starring popular actors Fan Bingbing and Vic Zhou. [sina.com]

A series of stills from TV sitcom "Jin da ban de zui hou yi ye," also known as "The Last Night of Madame Chin," starring popular actors Fan Bingbing and Vic Zhou, were released Tuesday.

The luxurious costumes and sets as seen from the stills came as good testimony to the high cost of the play, which is as much as 950,000 yuan per episode, the most expensive period drama to date, according to previous media reports.

The star-studded TV sitcom started shooting in Shanghai in early December.

Reportedly, the production team moves among the Chinese mainland, Hong Kong, Taiwan, Singapore and Malaysia to shoot the episodes.

Actors Alex Fong (Fang Zhongxin), Anthony Wong (Huang Qiusheng), Eric Huang (Huang Shao Qiu), Paul Chun (Qin Pei) and Chinese veteran actor Wang Xueqi are also in the cast.

Based on a novel by celebrated Chinese contemporary writer Bai Xin Yong, the play is a television remake of the 1985 film of the same name. It depicts the legend of Madame Chin (played by Fan Bingbing), who rises to prominence from a lowly ballroom dancer in old Shanghai, and her intertwined relationships with three men.

This is the second production from Studio Fan Bingbing, following the TV series "Rouge Snow."

(CRI January 14, 2009)