What can you save and spend that is not money?
Adapted from the novel “Momo,” a play of the same name will be staged at Majestic Theater on April 30 and May 1.
Published in 1973 and translated into over 40 languages, the novel was written by German writer of fantasy and children’s fiction Michael Ende, creator of the celebrated “Neverending Story.”
It is a story about a girl named Momo and her fight with the Men in Grey, who steal the time of humans.
Living alone in an abandoned outdoor theater, Momo doesn’t know how old she is but she is quite popular in the neighborhood because she is willing to listen to others.
The Men in Grey introduce a Timesavings Bank and promote the idea of “timesaving” for making money among the population.
Sterile, mechanical and boring, people’s lives are nothing but work, and the more time they save, the less they have.
The author tries to say that we spend too little time on ourselves while trivia and work take away our humanity and value of life.
In German, the word to describe life and living is the same — leban.
“I like the novel because the content of the book is still relevant, though it is a work from the last century. We wanted to use a less serious way to explore people’s problems with their work-life balance,” said Wan Qian, the actress who plays Momo in the show.
Wan won the Golden Horse Award for Best Supporting Actress in 2014 and Best Actress at the Beijing College Student Film Festival in 2016.
Produced by Vertebra Theater, the play is directed by Gil Mehmert from Germany.
The play is accompanied by live music from accordionist Wang Xue and cellist Zhang Yu.
Info
Date: April 30-May 1, 2pm, 7:30pm
Tickets: 100-600 yuan
Tel: 6217-4409
Venue: Majestic Theater
Address: 258 Fengxian Rd
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