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It is rare that a play， as a cultural event， sweeps a whole nation. However， The Invitation of Chiang Kai-shek has done just that. Chiang was head of the Kuomintang that ruled China from 1928 to 1949.
The comedy， written by a then 22-yearold college student Wen Fangyi， has attracted a flood of attention from Chinese media and the public.
The show has thus far completed its first sold-out national tour， to overwhelming success. Due to popular demand， extra dates have since been added with a tour in Beijing on November 15-17.
Unexpected success
“I have not seen such an interesting and culturally rich Chinese story for a while. It is a comedy with oxygen and nutrients，” said Shui Jing， a wellknown local drama critic.
“The Invitation of Chiang Kai-shek is hot property. It teaches us to trust young people and establish platforms to help them release and develop their talents without hindrance，” said Bai Yansong， a prominent CCTV news anchor.
Success had been unexpected， according to the young playwright. “I never expected my work to be so popular，” she said.
Indeed， when writing the comedy in 2012， Wen was still a senior at School of Liberal Arts of Nanjing University in Jiangsu Province. She penned the work as part of an assignment given out by her professor and later the director of the comedy， Deputy Dean Lu Xiaoping， to celebrate the university’s 110th anniversary. In May of the same year， it was first performed by the Master of Fine Arts Troupe， and directed by Lu.
The play tells the following story： In 1943， Chiang， then the new president of National Central University （renamed Nanjing University in 1949）， invited three renowned professors from the Chinese Department to a New Year’s Eve dinner. The seemingly innocent gesture subsequently posed a serious problem. During the “cultural revolution（1966-76）”， which occurred more than 20 years later， the professors had to report to the government on whether they had accepted Chiang’s invitation， as Chiang was then viewed as archenemy of the Chinese mainland.
“At the time， I thought it would only be performed once as a form of easy entertainment. To my surprise， demand for it never subsided，” Wen said.
After more than 30 shows in Nanjing， the play hit Beijing， Shanghai， Xi’an， Wuhan and Chengdu， as well as other big cities across China. Its success has invariably put professional commercial troupes to shame. However， Wen is doubtful about her work’s popularity. “We don’t deserve so much attention. The positive reception surpassed our expectations，” she commented.
Her modest opinion is echoed by Lu. “Its fame doesn’t match up，” he said. “Every time we perform， I feel uneasy. The playwright is only a student while I’m not a professional director.”
So far， the comedy has grossed 5 million yuan （$818，330） at the box office.
Breaking boundaries
As Wen’s mentor， Lu wanted her thesis to promote the modernization of Chinese intellectual thought. “We must cross the threshold and stride toward independent thinking，” he explained.
“What I wanted to describe is the permanent dilemma faced by Chinese intellectuals， which has persisted despite modernization，”the playwright noted.
The play reveals the difficulty of retaining dignity and independence while confronting those in power during the turbulent 1940s. Chiang’s dinner invitation is a moral test for the three professors， Shi Rendao， Xia Xiaoshan and Bian Congzhou， who ended up having a terrible argument due to differing political views.
Left-leaning Shi， hates Chiang， who killed a student， for his despotic rule. Nevertheless， the professor wants to ask Chiang to ship back a box of books he left behind during the university’s retreat from Nanjing to Chongqing， prior to Nanjing’s seizure by the Japanese forces.
Xia， on the other hand， recognizes Chiang as a leader of the country， but thinks he is unqualified as university president. However， as a crazed food lover， he is keen to taste a famous dish on the menu.
In turn， Bian is a government supporter who tries his best to persuade the rest to accept the invitation， only to be condemned as a flatterer.
“I wanted to lay bare preconceived roles in society. Intellectuals are always seen as spiritual leaders， but rarely have the necessary qualities. This is a permanent paradox，” Wen said.
The story surrounding the play has existed at Nanjing University since the 1940s. However， as Wen researched the topic， she found it to be more legend than truth.
“Since there was no historical evidence， I had space for my imagination，” she said.
Drama in peril？
With the comedy’s success， Wen received a recommendation to pursue postgraduate studies at Nanjing University.
As for how she will spend the money made from the show， “Professor Lu told me it might buy me a car or even an apartment. I don’t know. The play has done well and I’d like to share its success with my parents by taking them out for dinner.”
“The Invitation of Chiang Kai-shek is a very personal piece， with no other interests involved. We didn’t follow the routine of constructing heroes. Instead we put the professors on the rack and exposed their hearts，” Lu explained.
“The play is my first complete work. I have never published anything before in my life. The interesting thing is， after more than 30 performances， I was given a Newcomer’s Award， which made me kind of sad，” Wen said.
“Many of my classmates are more gifted than me， but their works may not be suitable for commercial purposes. Or they are not lucky enough to hit on a clever subject，” she added. “It is common for gifted people not to get a chance to expose their talent， but chances can’t be this few. The problem must be the environment.”
Wen pointed out that unlike in developed countries that provide certain subsidies for drama， in China， it is all or nothing.
The comedy， written by a then 22-yearold college student Wen Fangyi， has attracted a flood of attention from Chinese media and the public.
The show has thus far completed its first sold-out national tour， to overwhelming success. Due to popular demand， extra dates have since been added with a tour in Beijing on November 15-17.
Unexpected success
“I have not seen such an interesting and culturally rich Chinese story for a while. It is a comedy with oxygen and nutrients，” said Shui Jing， a wellknown local drama critic.
“The Invitation of Chiang Kai-shek is hot property. It teaches us to trust young people and establish platforms to help them release and develop their talents without hindrance，” said Bai Yansong， a prominent CCTV news anchor.
Success had been unexpected， according to the young playwright. “I never expected my work to be so popular，” she said.
Indeed， when writing the comedy in 2012， Wen was still a senior at School of Liberal Arts of Nanjing University in Jiangsu Province. She penned the work as part of an assignment given out by her professor and later the director of the comedy， Deputy Dean Lu Xiaoping， to celebrate the university’s 110th anniversary. In May of the same year， it was first performed by the Master of Fine Arts Troupe， and directed by Lu.
The play tells the following story： In 1943， Chiang， then the new president of National Central University （renamed Nanjing University in 1949）， invited three renowned professors from the Chinese Department to a New Year’s Eve dinner. The seemingly innocent gesture subsequently posed a serious problem. During the “cultural revolution（1966-76）”， which occurred more than 20 years later， the professors had to report to the government on whether they had accepted Chiang’s invitation， as Chiang was then viewed as archenemy of the Chinese mainland.
“At the time， I thought it would only be performed once as a form of easy entertainment. To my surprise， demand for it never subsided，” Wen said.
After more than 30 shows in Nanjing， the play hit Beijing， Shanghai， Xi’an， Wuhan and Chengdu， as well as other big cities across China. Its success has invariably put professional commercial troupes to shame. However， Wen is doubtful about her work’s popularity. “We don’t deserve so much attention. The positive reception surpassed our expectations，” she commented.
Her modest opinion is echoed by Lu. “Its fame doesn’t match up，” he said. “Every time we perform， I feel uneasy. The playwright is only a student while I’m not a professional director.”
So far， the comedy has grossed 5 million yuan （$818，330） at the box office.
Breaking boundaries
As Wen’s mentor， Lu wanted her thesis to promote the modernization of Chinese intellectual thought. “We must cross the threshold and stride toward independent thinking，” he explained.
“What I wanted to describe is the permanent dilemma faced by Chinese intellectuals， which has persisted despite modernization，”the playwright noted.
The play reveals the difficulty of retaining dignity and independence while confronting those in power during the turbulent 1940s. Chiang’s dinner invitation is a moral test for the three professors， Shi Rendao， Xia Xiaoshan and Bian Congzhou， who ended up having a terrible argument due to differing political views.
Left-leaning Shi， hates Chiang， who killed a student， for his despotic rule. Nevertheless， the professor wants to ask Chiang to ship back a box of books he left behind during the university’s retreat from Nanjing to Chongqing， prior to Nanjing’s seizure by the Japanese forces.
Xia， on the other hand， recognizes Chiang as a leader of the country， but thinks he is unqualified as university president. However， as a crazed food lover， he is keen to taste a famous dish on the menu.
In turn， Bian is a government supporter who tries his best to persuade the rest to accept the invitation， only to be condemned as a flatterer.
“I wanted to lay bare preconceived roles in society. Intellectuals are always seen as spiritual leaders， but rarely have the necessary qualities. This is a permanent paradox，” Wen said.
The story surrounding the play has existed at Nanjing University since the 1940s. However， as Wen researched the topic， she found it to be more legend than truth.
“Since there was no historical evidence， I had space for my imagination，” she said.
Drama in peril？
With the comedy’s success， Wen received a recommendation to pursue postgraduate studies at Nanjing University.
As for how she will spend the money made from the show， “Professor Lu told me it might buy me a car or even an apartment. I don’t know. The play has done well and I’d like to share its success with my parents by taking them out for dinner.”
“The Invitation of Chiang Kai-shek is a very personal piece， with no other interests involved. We didn’t follow the routine of constructing heroes. Instead we put the professors on the rack and exposed their hearts，” Lu explained.
“The play is my first complete work. I have never published anything before in my life. The interesting thing is， after more than 30 performances， I was given a Newcomer’s Award， which made me kind of sad，” Wen said.
“Many of my classmates are more gifted than me， but their works may not be suitable for commercial purposes. Or they are not lucky enough to hit on a clever subject，” she added. “It is common for gifted people not to get a chance to expose their talent， but chances can’t be this few. The problem must be the environment.”
Wen pointed out that unlike in developed countries that provide certain subsidies for drama， in China， it is all or nothing.