The Bard in Beijing and beyond

William Shakespeare's work has graced the Chinese page and stage for more than a century now, but the enormous breadth of his work has dazzled rather than enlightened when it's transplanted ... until now, writes Raymond Zhou.

William Shakespeare was placed on a pedestal when his name first appeared in Chinese publications around 1839. Great scholars and artists have since made numerous attempts to bring the "Swan of Avon" to a Chinese-speaking audience. Although statistics are hard to come by, it's almost certain that he is the most translated foreign author and the most staged foreign dramatist.

Shakespeare (1564-1616) who was born and died on the same date, April 23 - now the UNESCO-anointed World Book Day - has been an inspiration for several generations of Chinese readers and theatergoers. (Spain's Miguel de Cervantes died on the same day April 23, 1616; and Tang Xianzu, arguably China's greatest dramatist and author of The Peony Pavilion, died in the same year.)