National Center for the Performing Arts, May 27 - 29, 2016.

Tsangyang Gyatso, the premiere dance drama of China Ethnic Song and Dance Ensemble since its establishment for over 60 years, tells a story of Tsangyang Gyatso as an ordinary person. This dance drama has shaped the inner heart of Tsangyang Gyatso, the young monk, and revealed the magnificent and glorious ethnic culture in his time, containing varied Tibetan dances, beautiful Tibetan music and distinctive Tibetan folk scenes. There is no story of other Dalai that spreads as widely in folk as that of Tsangyang Gyatso in historical legend. Neither is there another person who is a monk, lover, and poet full of legends like him. The dance drama has molded his inner world by way of multi-scenes and multi-levels, presented the lyrical Tibetan music and colorful dance culture through plentiful dances, Tibetan Opera, singing and Tibetan instrument playing based on the art form of dance drama. Tsangyang Gyatso has as well shown the depth of Tibetan culture, the sincerity and simplicity of Tibetan people, and the richness of the art.

Dance drama Tsangyang Gyatso, divided into Prologue, Act One to Four, and Epilogue, is a multi-act dance drama without sessions, lasting for about 90 minutes.

The dance drama strives to shape a Tibetan monk full of vitality yet of contradiction through the expression of Tsangyang Gyatso’s yearning and longing for family members and his lover, the description of his ambivalence about study and life, and the creation of his pursuit of romantic life.

The dance drama enhances, in particular, Tsangyang Gyatso’s artistic charm and contradictory psychological tracks between his talent and reality by manifestation of his character and description of many characters’ personality. It meanwhile selects multiple art forms as distinctive Tibetan dance materials from Tibetan areas, performing form of Tibetan Opera, ballad singing and Tibetan instrument playing to display the depth of Tibetan culture, the sincerity and simplicity of Tibetan people, and the richness of art.