Dreams of ancient chambers

London has its reconstructed Globe Theater, where audiences can watch Shakespeare plays in an Elizabethan setting - and Beijing has its Imperial Granary, an original Ming Dynasty building, where traditional Kunqu Opera is performed nightly.

Renowned theater director Lin Zhaohua says his revival of the classic play The Peony Pavilion (Mudan Ting) combines traditional elegance with an intimate and historic setting - the granary seats audiences of no more than 60 people. This means visitors are close enough to the stage to appreciate the subtleties of the actors' expression and the musical accompaniment.

The construction of the Imperial Granary started in 1409, 10 years before the Forbidden City. The opera performance is staged without the aid of microphones, just as it would have been in the Ming Dynasty (1368-1644).