The final competition of the 10th Chinese Theatre Award – Plum Performance Award – will be held in Shanghai from May 8 to 21.

Hailed as the highest honor for Chinese theater performing arts, the award is sponsored by the China Federation of Literary and Art Circles, the China Theatre Association and the publicity department of Shanghai. This is the first time the event has been held in Shanghai in the award's 42-year history.

A total of 17 shortlisted productions will be staged in Shanghai, covering 11 types of traditional Chinese folk operas, as well as drama and dance theater performances. This year, a total of 62 outstanding drama actors participated in the preliminary evaluation, with 17 advancing to the final round.

We believe theater should serve the people and hope the award-winning productions will stage more performances and reach a wider audience," said Chen Yongquan, deputy chairman of the China Theatre Association. "For this reason, we want to give priority to productions with simple stage designs, where the theatrical effect relies heavily on the capabilities of the actors, so that the award-winning productions can tour extensively and reach more audiences."

Fifteen winners of the Plum Performance Award will be announced on May 21, along with five winning scripts for the 26th Cao Yu Theatrical Literature Award.