Shandong Opera House's concert opera, The Orphan of Zhao, received a drama award at the Second China Opera Festival held in the city of Wuhan, Hubei province, from Oct 29-Nov 13. During the event, 38 performances were staged by more than 3,000 artists and professional cast.

In line with "China Dream", the theme of the festival, The Orphan of Zhao, a Chinese play of the Yuan Dynasty (1271-1368) written in the second half of the 13th century, tells a story of a hero that sacrifices his son to save the life of young Zhao so that Zhao can later avenge the death of his family.

Shandong Opera House's concert opera, The Orphan of Zhao, is well received by the audiences in Shandong province.[Photo by Shandong Opera House/provided to chinadaily.com.cn]

Shandong Opera House's concert opera, The Orphan of Zhao, receives a drama award at the Second China Opera Festival held in the city of Wuhan, Hubei province, from Oct 29-Nov 13.[Photo by Shandong Opera House/provided to chinadaily.com.cn]

Shandong Opera House's concert opera, The Orphan of Zhao, receives a drama award at the Second China Opera Festival held in the city of Wuhan, Hubei province, from Oct 29-Nov 13.[Photo by Shandong Opera House/provided to chinadaily.com.cn]

Compared with opera, concert opera simplifies the stage performance, lighting, costumes, props, make-up and other forms, but still captures the core essence of opera, and the connection between the audience and the human voice.

Sponsors of the festival were China's Ministry of Culture and the People's Government of Hubei Province.