CSIAF targets young audiences

From the soprano singing the aria Yes, They Call Me Mimi, in a mini denim skirt, to middle-school students dancing Stravinsky's The Firebird, the 14th China Shanghai International Arts Festival has made great efforts to bring arts to a wider and younger audience.

On Oct 18, CSIAF will open with a new production of La Boheme, where Rodolfo and his artistic friends wear dark glasses and wool caps, and Mimi dresses in a mini skirt and trendy combat boots.

"The play director Damiano Michieletto believes the theme and emotions in the classic opera resonate with life today - young people still struggle to achieve their dreams and lovers hurt each other unintentionally," says Zhang Xiaoding, vice-director of Shanghai Grand Theater.