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Chinese performing groups are facing a difficult situation when traveling overseas...

Home to a diverse range of cultures, China has numerous performance groups around the country specializing in a dizzying range of theatrical art; from local opera to minority dance, from traditional acrobatics to Kung Fu. Yet in comparison to their foreign counterparts, Chinese performing groups earn relatively little from overseas tours, reported CRI online.

At the annual conference of the Federation of Asian Cultural Promotion (FACP) which concluded at the end of last month in Shanghai, some typical Chinese art works were promoted. Among them were two famous Kunqu operas, The Hall of Everlasting Life (Changsheng Dian) and The Peony Pavilion (Mudan Ting). However, putting on one of these shows abroad earns the opera company about 10, 000 USD per performance, only about a 1/5th of what hit musicals like The Sound of Music or Les Mis?rables' earn in Shanghai. "Provided that transportation and accommodation expenses are covered, 10, 000 USD is pretty much the limit for Chinese performance groups," says Lu Hongxing, director of Suzhou Lanyun Art Transmission Company, which manages the two works. The huge gap in revenue speaks oceans for the difficult situation China's performing groups face when traveling overseas.

But there are exceptions. China Performing Arts Agency (CPAA) is the largest and most professional performing arts agents management company in the country. Zhu Ziyi is deputy general manager of the company and throughout his career he's experienced working for the company as a monopoly, then half-monopoly, and now as an equal competitor with other agents. During his career in arts management, he's specialized in promoting Chinese performances abroad. In 2003, he worked with the Shanghai Acrobatic Troupe on the production of a stage drama called "Tai Ji Space" (Taiji Kongjian), a successful combination of acrobatics, Chinese Kong fu and modern dance and pop music. In Germany, it had 150 performances. And it was similarly popular with American audiences. Along with its financial success came the possibility of more performances, and the drama is said to be booked up until 2006.

However such stage successes for Chinese performances abroad are few and far between. In fact the overseas revenues of most of these stage performances are far from satisfactory. There are 3 reasons, according to Zhu Ziyi. The first is that cutthroat competition among troupes and agents have hindered the sound development of their sector. As the nation's policy toward overseas performances is liberalized, groups have jumped at every opportunity to perform abroad. Some performing agents and troupes do not hesitate to cut performance prices and costs thereby making proper marketing campaigns impossible. This has not only impaired the quality and image of Chinese performances, but has also made it harder for them to enter mainstream theatres and reduced their earning power. The second fault is a lack of named brands. Many performances have little lasting influence. And of the performances that travel abroad, acrobatics shows make up almost 70%, while a?exports' of dance, dramas, musicals make up less than 30% of the total. Less than ideal marketing accounts for the third reason for lack of success abroad. Domestic groups usually spare no effort and cost in improving the quality of the performance but pay less attention about commercial work. In fact the publicity is often so poorly done that they are unable to provide a comprehensible translation of casting and plot. A lack of expertise and experience is holding China back in gaining bigger market shares and revenue in the global arena.

Some insiders say improving the quality of service at management companies is the key to resolving these problems. In global terms, behind every successful performance group or artist is a qualified agent who can work well with the group while managing business efficiently. In China it seems that it may take some time to realize this goal.