Cooking a Dream, a "new national drama" work directed by young artist Huang Ying, has opened the New Year Performance Season of Zhengyici, a traditional theater in Beijing that has a history spanning three centuries.

The show borrows from the "national drama" concept of 1920s China and blends modern drama with traditional Chinese opera.

Cooking a Dream retells the folktale in which a poor young scholar lives a dramatic life but discovers it was all just a dream he had while sleeping in a small inn on his way to the national examination. The millet that started cooking before he fell asleep is still not ready when he wakes.

The play features a minimalistic set design, live traditional instrumentation, Chinese opera vocals and multimedia presentations.

The actors cook millet, which the audience shares after the performance.

The play's first found of shows at Zhengyici will end on Nov 26. The second round will be held from Dec 1 to Dec 4.

The play also staged 24 performances at this year's Avignon Festival in France in July.