Huang Lei and Sun Li (L)

"My wife and I created the role of Yun in 1986. And I believe the real life couple will bring chemistry to the stage," director Lai says. "Sun and Huang are both talented performers. Their rehearsals have been impressive."

"They have done a lot of work at home. They look so natural, so smooth but with a passion for detail during rehearsals," says Yuan Hong, the play's producer.

Lai's Secret Love in Peach Blossom Land is not only two plays within a play, where both are performed in part, but the two narratives are seemingly opposing genres - one comedy and the other, a tragedy. The comedy and tragedy play out separately onstage, interrupt each other and then proceed to compliment each other.

Lai cites two inspirations for the play. While earning his PhD from the University of California at Berkeley, Lai studied the Greek dramatic form known as Satyr, a comedic drama which would traditionally be performed following a set of three tragedies.

"People may consider tragedy and comedy as opposing concepts, but I started to see it differently," Lai says.

By the end of the play, when lovers Yun and Jiang are reunited after four decades apart, "the laughter gives way to sobs and the audience is left to contemplate the burdens of memory, history, longing and love - and the power of theater itself," read the New York Times review for its Beijing run in Nov 2006.

The play will be staged in Beijing's Poly Theater from Saturday to April 1.