''Wang Baochuan and Xue Pinggui'' (), also known by many other names such as ''The Red-Maned Stallion'', ''Wujiapo'', ''Returning to the Cave'', and ''The Story of the Colourful Tower'', is a Chinese legend commonly played out in

Chinese opera Traditional Chinese opera (), or ''Xiqu'', is a form of musical theatre in China with roots going back to the early periods in China. It is an amalgamation of various art forms that existed in ancient China, and evolved gradually over more tha ...

theatres. The story takes place in the

Tang dynasty The Tang dynasty (, ; zh, t= ), or Tang Empire, was an Dynasties in Chinese history, imperial dynasty of China that ruled from 618 to 907 AD, with an Zhou dynasty (690–705), interregnum between 690 and 705. It was preceded by the Sui dyn ...

, supposedly during

Emperor Xuanzong of Tang (9th century) Emperor Xuanzong of Tang (July 27, 810 – September 7, 859) (reigned April 25, 846 – September 7, 859) was an emperor in the latter part of the Tang dynasty of China. Personally named Li Yi, later renamed Li Chen (), and known before his rei ...

's reign, but is otherwise completely fictional. The story is known in the west as ''Lady Precious Stream'' ("Precious Stream" is a loose translation of the female protagonist's given name, Baochuan), which was adapted to western theatre by

Hsiung Shih-I Hsiung Shih-I (; also S. I. Hsiung or Xiong Shiyi; 1902–1991) was a writer, biographer, translator, academic, and playwright in Beijing and London. He was the first Chinese person to direct a West End play, and the founder of Tsing Hua Academy ...

. It was performed at the Little Theatre in John Street, London, by the People's National Theatre, directed by

Nancy Price Nancy Price, CBE (3 February 1880 – 31 March 1970), was an English actress on stage and screen, author and theatre director. Her acting career began in a repertory theatre company before progressing to the London stage, silent films, talkies and ...

and Hsiung, and ran for 1,000 nights. The play was also later performed on

Broadway Broadway may refer to: Theatre * Broadway Theatre (disambiguation) * Broadway theatre, theatrical productions in professional theatres near Broadway, Manhattan, New York City, U.S. ** Broadway (Manhattan), the street **Broadway Theatre (53rd Stree ...

at the

Booth Theatre The Booth Theatre is a Broadway theater at 222 West 45th Street ( George Abbott Way) in the Theater District of Midtown Manhattan in New York City. Opened in 1913, the theater was designed by Henry Beaumont Herts in the Italian Renaissance ...

in New York, produced by

Morris Gest Morris Gest (also Maurice Guest, March 15, 1875 – May 16, 1942) was an American theatre producer, theatrical producer of the early 20th century. Early life Moishe Gershnowitz was born near Vilna (then part of the Russian empire, now Lithuania), ...

Film and TV adaptations

*''Wang Baochuan'', a 1939 Chinese film *''Lady Precious Stream'', a 1950 English TV film *''The Story of Sit Ping-kwai and Wong Bo-chuen'', a 1956 Taiwanese film *''The Story of Wong Bo-Chuan'', a 1959 Hong Kong film *''The Story of Ping Gui'', a 1967 Taiwanese film *''Wang Baochuan and Xue Pinggui'', a 1999 Taiwanese TV series *'' Love Amongst War'', a 2012 Chinese TV series

References

{{China-lit-stub Chinese operas Fictional duos Tang dynasty in fiction Chinese folklore Love stories