Cross-Cultural Adaptation and Directorial Transformation of the Play ‘The Dawns are Quiet Here...’ on the Stage of the E. Mirovich Training Studio Theatre of the Belarusian State Academy of Arts

On 17 April 2025 on the stage of the Evstigney Mirovich Training Studio Theatre of the Belarusian State Academy of Arts in Minsk the premiere show of the play ‘The Dawns are Quiet Here...’ took place, timed to the 80th anniversary of the Great Victory and the 80th anniversary of the Belarusian State Academy of Arts (BSAА). The 80th anniversary of the Victory over Fascism is the central event of 2025. BSAА strives to preserve the historical memory of the Great Patriotic War and pass it on to the next generations; the theme of heroic deeds during the war years is reflected in the course and diploma works of undergraduate and graduate students. The uniqueness of the staging of ‘The Dawns are Quiet Here...’ at the BSAА was that for the first time on the Belarusian stage this play was staged by a Chinese team and performed in Chinese. The director was Yang Peihan, a graduate of the Master’s Degree of the Russian State Institute of Stage Arts, previously a teacher of theatre faculties at various universities in China, a Chinese theatre director, a laureate of international theatre competitions. The roles were performed by Chinese MA students in theatre studies, and the technical support was also done by MA students. In the stage design were used graphic works of Belarusian students of BSAА in 1960-1980s. For the convenience of Belarusian spectators the performance was accompanied by credits in Russian. After its successful premiere, the play was invited to participate in the Third Republican Theatre Festival ‘Peramoga’ (‘Victory’); the screening within the festival took place on 23 May 2025. This theatrical practice is unique and innovative not only in the sense that the Chinese play the roles of Soviet heroes, but also in the sense that the Chinese actors localise the common emotions of the two countries. This article describes the methodology and process of creating a theatre production from the director’s point of view.