Drama adaptation

Arguably the hottest TV series last year, Start from Scratch (Fen Dou) has now been adapted into a theater production featuring popular winners of the talent shows My Show and My Hero. Written by Shi Kang, Fen Dou tells the story of seven close friends of the "balinghou" (post-80s generation) and their pursuit of true love and career success. The show provoked a nationwide debate about the "balinghou", a term now widely used in everyday language.

Usually the members of the post-80s generation are said to be selfish, materialistic and lacking any sense of responsibility. Many, though, have refuted the idea that the show genuinely represents them. Shi says he tried to avoid perpetuating stereotypes and the story is more about youth in general than "balinghou" in particular.

Whatever the arguments, the TV series was super-popular and made stars of its lead players, so the theater production has aroused great anticipation. There is also some curiosity about how the 30 TV episodes will be shortened into a 110-minute play and who will land the much-coveted roles people are so familiar with, like Lu Tao, Xia Ling, Yang Xiaoyun, Xiang Nan and Mi Lai.