A team of visionary artists and producers are inaugurating a major new international theatre festival in the ancient Chinese town of Wuzhen, a UNESCO World Heritage Site candidate, from May 9-19, 2013. The Inaugural Wuzhen Theatre Festival will combine an exciting mix of international and Chinese theatre amidst the stunning background of the most beautiful ancient water town in China, only an hour away from Shanghai.

Wuzhen, a dreamy town with 1300 years of history, has been called "Venice of the East." In recent years, under the visionary planning of Festival Director Chen Xianghong, the ancient town has been transformed into one of China's major tourist destinations, with five star hotels and restaurants integrated seamlessly into the ancient architecture, along with charming bed and breakfasts and boutique hotels. Surrounded by water and ancient architecture, the town has undergone further recent transformation with the building of a brand new state of the art performing arts center, the Wuzhen Grand Theatre, designed on the water by internationally renowned Taiwanese architect Kris Yao. Five other stunning performance venues have been renovated and created from old riverside warehouses, ancient residences, plazas and theatres under the personal direction of Artistic Director Stan Lai, the most celebrated playwright and director in the Chinese world, together with the Producing Director, renowned actor Huang Lei. These venues include the Ancient Courtyard Theatre, a restored architectural jewel; a Teahouse Theatre located in the former residence of a wealthy businessman; the converted riverside warehouse “Twins” East and West theatres; a stunning outdoor plaza hiding in the historical street blocks and an astonishing outdoor Water Theatre that borrows architectural ideas from Chinese garden landscaping.

The Wuzhen Theatre Festival has invited renowned American theatre scholar and director Robert Brustein to be its inaugural Honorary Chairman. Running from May 9th through the 19th, 2013, the line-up of world class theatre includes Inside The Skeleton of The Whale by Denmark’s acclaimed Odin Teatret, directed by the esteemed Eugenio Barba; The Dance and The Railroad by Tony Award and Steinberg Distinguished Playwright Award winner David Henry Hwang; Robert Brustein's latest work The Last Will, based on the last days of Shakespeare; the legendary 8 hour epic A Dream Like A Dream by Stan Lai in a grand joint Taiwan/China production; the highly acclaimed Four Generations Under One Roof by National Theatre of China, under the direction of Tian Qinxin; and China's premier experimental theatre director Meng Jinghui's Murder of Hanging Garden. The Festival will also host a Young Theatre Artist's Competition with generous prize awards to promote the best of new creative works.

This most idyllic setting for a theatre festival in Asia will come alive in May 2013, when the world will experience the dreamlike poetry of the town of Wuzhen and the rapture of the best of international theatre.