Hong interacts with the audience during the show at the Drum Tower West Theatre in Beijing. [Photo by Zhang Bonan/For China Daily]

A new chapter

"Most people don't have the patience for such a long show, but my teacher loved it very much. I want to re-stage it with my own ideas to appeal to today's young audiences," says Hong.

Traditionally, professional string puppeteers engaged only with string puppetry, the most famous and watched art form in Fujian. However, Hong believes the old art form needs to evolve.

"I want to master different puppetry skills," he says. "Old plays are fading, and audiences are dwindling. Few young actors can master and inherit all the traditional skills."

In 2018, Hong left Quanzhou to ride his bicycle along the coast through cities like Zhangzhou and Xiamen in Fujian, and Chaozhou and Shantou in Guangdong province. Taking his puppets, with about 20,000 yuan ($2,800) in his pocket, he performed for children at welfare institutions for free. Many of these experiences left a mark on him.

His goal was to find a way to innovate his art and connect with audiences. After more than a month of traveling, he arrived in Shenzhen, met Liu Ziyuan, the head of a youth theater troupe, and decided to stay. In 2022, the Shenzhen Puppet Art Theatre was established by Liu and Hong, with Hong as artistic director. Shenzhen, a dynamic city in Guangdong province, became fertile ground for string puppetry.

During the day, Hong trains young students interested in puppetry. At night, he performs, makes puppets, writes scripts, and works on new ideas for automatons.

"I also visit my hometown to see my teacher, Lin, who is now 76. I play mahjong with him and discuss my new shows. I am happy to make him proud," says Hong.