Written in 1967, The Price tells a story about two brothers reuniting, decades after taking separate paths in life, to sell their late father's estate.

In the Chinese production, the big brother, Walter Franz, played by He, is a successful doctor who chooses to live for nobody but himself, while the younger brother, Victor, who is played by Zhou Shuai, lives a humble life with his wife Esther.

"The play starts with a discussion about the estimated price of the old furniture, but as it goes on, the play talks about all the problems one can possibly encounter in his or her lifetime," says He.

"The two brothers realize that there is no perfect choice in life and everybody has to pay the price of their own decisions. We have quite a lot of men like Walter now in China — people who have achieved considerable success in terms of money and fame in this rapidly developing economy, but are they really as fulfilled as they claim to be? What is the dark hole in his heart that draws Walter back to the old house?"

Li points out that while audiences tend to sympathize with Victor, who is the underdog, people should refrain from making moral judgments, and find the "resilience and strength of these broken characters".

"Life is cruel, but at the same time it can also empower people," she says.

The Price is the second production in which He takes on the roles of both director and main actor, with the first being the Chinese production of Le Pere by French author Florian Zeller in 2018.

The original 1968 production of The Price won several theater prizes and has been adapted several times for TV. The latest English production is directed by Conleth Hill and is being shown at the Gate Theatre in Dublin, Ireland.

Contact the writer at zhangkun@chinadaily.com.cn

If you go

The Price

7:15 pm, June 20-23

Shanghai Grand Theatre, 300 Renmin Avenue, Huangpu district, Shanghai

021-6386-8686