'Children's theater month' to begin April 12

To encourage more Chinese children to attend theaters, the China National Theatre for Children will launch a "children's theater month" from April 12 through May 3, featuring four plays adapted from the country's most recognized children's comics and cartoons.

With 13 performances, the plays are expected to attract more than 10,000 audience members. Tickets are priced between 50 yuan and 180 yuan ($8.05-$29), with tickets for less than 100 yuan promised to account for 40 percent of all available seats. Some tickets will also be donated to children of migrant workers and children with disabilities.

In addition to the plays, the children's theater month will also feature small workshops and other educational events to help foster children's interest in drama.

Children's theater accounts for 15 percent of all theater performances in Beijing. As the number of theaters in Beijing continues to grow, the municipal government carries out supportive policies and schools pay more attention to art education, the capital's market for children's theater is growing rapidly, said Guo Zhuqing, an official from Beijing municipal government's cultural department.

The cultural department is working out plans to link the capital's more than 30 children's drama troupes, with the help of the China National Theatre for Children, so they can better cooperate with each other and present more and better performances.