Renowned artists at the Beijing People's Art Theater are getting ready for the premiere of the show "Wotou House". The play depicts the life of ordinary urban dwellers in a Beijing slum prior to the liberation of the city in 1949.

As a tribute to the 60th anniversary of the founding of the People's Republic of China, the play "Wotou House" features a stellar cast, involving virtually all the topnotch artists at the Beijing People's Art Theater. Among them are Song Dandan, Pu Cunxin, He Bing, and Xu Fan.

Set in a courtyard shared by several households in a slum area in south Beijing, the story paints a vivid picture of ordinary life in a naturalistic manner. Among the roles are a small-time policeman, a desperate old scholar clinging to fast-fading traditions, a shrewd wife jealously guarding her husband, and a morally ambiguous real-estate agent.

The play was written by Lui Heng, who was born and bred in south Beijing. His mastery of the vernacular infuses the dialogue with the unique flavor of the region. The theater hopes that "Wotou House" will become another enduring classic of the magnitude of "Tea House" by Lao She.

The show will run from September the 25th to November the 8th at the Capital Theater in Beijing. So far, half of the tickets have been sold with a box office of more than 3.5 million yuan (US$ 512 thousand).

(CCTV.com September 23, 2009)