Dongpo: Life in Poems, choreographer Shen Wei’s dance opera on the Song Dynasty poet Su Dongpo, has added a third Singapore performance at 7pm on Saturday 5 December 2026. The new show joins the 8pm performance on Friday 4 December and the 2.30pm matinee on Saturday 5 December, all at Esplanade Theatre.
Tickets for all three shows, including the added 7pm, are on sale. They cost S$69 for Cat 4, S$99 for Cat 3, S$139 for Cat 2 and S$179 for Cat 1, with Esplanade Box seats at S$249.
A poet’s life in 13 poems
The work draws on the poetry and life of Su Dongpo (1037 to 1101). Its Singapore presenter, Castiglione Arts and Culture, describes it as a contemporary dance opera built on 13 selected poems rather than a straight biography, mixing contemporary dance with Chinese opera and tai chi. Calligraphy, painting and seal engraving run through the stage design.
The production turns the reading of those poems into movement, sound and image on stage. Zhao Xiaoxia plays the guqin live.
Shen Wei and the creative team
Shen Wei is the production’s director, playwright, set and costume designer and visual effects art director. He founded Shen Wei Dance Arts in New York in 2000, received the Nijinsky Award in 2004 and a MacArthur Fellowship in 2007, and directed the Scroll Painting section of the Beijing 2008 Olympic Games opening ceremony.
Chinese-French composer Chen Qigang, music director of that 2008 opening ceremony, co-composed the score. Lighting is by Xiao Lihe, who lit the same ceremony. China Oriental Performing Arts Group produces and performs the work, and Castiglione presents the Singapore run with Meishan Song and Dance Theatre, from the Sichuan city where Su Dongpo was born.
Show times and tickets
- Friday 4 December, 8pm
- Saturday 5 December, 2.30pm
- Saturday 5 December, 7pm (the added show)
Each performance runs 1 hour 20 minutes with no intermission. Admission is for ages 6 and above, and the work is performed in Chinese with English captions. Tickets are sold through Esplanade and SISTIC.
Esplanade MRT on the Circle Line is the nearest station.
