Press Release: The first 3D theatrical show in world history

The first 3D theatrical show in world history

Unlikely as it would seem, a new musical, Terracotta Warriors 3D, opened in Beijing as the world’s very first 3D theatrical production on September 2^nd, 2014.  Associated with that event, a previously unknown venue in Beijing has just become the world’s first 3D digital theater.  This has history-making implications!  With the increasingly popularity of 3D cinema, the claim of being the first 3D theatrical production in human history is notable enough, but to have this happen in China is truly a shocking surprise.  After all, even though Japan became the world’s most dominant imitator for decades after the Second World War, China has surpassed Japan as the greatest imitator since the last quarter of the twentieth century.  Now, it is showcasing something that is the first in world history?

This game changer is based on Terracotta Warriors 3D use of the first large 3D LED video wall as the backbone of its art direction.  The most worthy aspect of this first-of-the-kind LED video wall is that great 3D effects can be appreciated by the audience using common passive polarizing 3D glasses used by 3D cinema worldwide.  Dr. Dennis Law, the director and producer of Terracotta Warriors 3D claims: “Given the technology today, true and high quality 3D effect can only be achieved by wearing 3D glasses.  This unique LED video wall used by Terracotta Warriors 3D is the first one manufactured in the world suitable for theatrical use.  That is why the audience will experience a theatrical experience that has never been achieved before.  I am certain 3D theater will improve with time, but the fact remains that it started on September 2^nd 2014 with Sight, Sound & Action’s Beijing production of Terracotta Warriors 3D.”

The producers of this historical 3D show believe that the alternative of “glasses-free 3D” offers image quality that is both too poor and too dependent on center-position viewing to be useful in theater applications.  Other methodologies like “3D-mapping” do not really offer real 3D effects useful in a story-telling stage setting.  Conventional high-end 3D projectors used in modern cinema are ineffective in stage works because theatrical lighting washes out the projected image too drastically.  Lastly, even though excellent 3D imagery can be obtained using a specialized LED video wall with active battery-dependent 3D glasses, this application is totally impractical for theatrical live-show use.  Active 3D glasses not infrequently lose its synchronization with the screen --- with hundreds in the audience, huge uproars are inevitable as batteries lose power and synchronization is dropped intermittently.

Terracotta Warriors 3D has successfully solved most of the important problems with regard to live actors performing and dancing in front of the high definition 3D video screen.  Our 3D LED video wall is truly the first in the world.  A pioneering 3D digital post-production company in Beijing has overcome unique difficulties with regard to launching this history-making show with eighty minutes of 3D digital graphics and animation.  For the first time, the human brain has been asked to appreciate real-live 3D (as in live dancers on stage) and virtual 3D effects and scenic background at the same time ---- and successfully so! 

Being the very first in world history is a rare opportunity indeed.  It would be hard to argue against Terracotta Warriors 3D’s legitimate claim.  Check for more details at www.tcw3d.com. 

Monique Q,
V.P. Marketing, U.S.,
Sight, Sound & Action

e-mail: info@eArtChina.net  

Costume Design

Mo Xiaomin, Original Costume Designer

Mo Xiaomin began studying Sichuan Opera at the age of thirteen.  For ten years, he worked as both an actor and set designer before enrolling in the prestigious Shanghai Drama Academy in 1987.  Later, by joining the Shanghai Opera House, he found himself doing costume designs for regional opera and television series and feature films.  To date, Mr. Mo has designed costumes for over a hundred major films, television series, and stage productions.  Mr. Mo is one of China’s most distinguished costume designers.  In 2004, Terracotta Warriors was Mr. Mo’s first assignment for an American Producer/Director.  In 2007, Mr. Mo won the Canadian Toronto Dora Award for Best Costume Design for the Action-Musical Tang Concubines produced by Sight, Sound & Action. 

Ah Kuan, Designer for New Costumes for 3D edition

Ah Kuan is one of China’s most notable costume designers working in Beijing.  Recognized for designing costumes for over a hundred productions of theater and film, he was widely touted for his designs for the opening and closing ceremonies of the 2008 Paralympic Games in Beijing.  Ah Kuan has also been the costume designer for the last three Action-Musicals by Sight, Sound & Action, Heartbeat Hawaii, Monkey King, and Senses (Las Vegas edition).  For his work on Monkey King, Ah Kuan won a nomination for the 2010 Toronto Dora Award for Best Costume Design.

Choreography & Stage Direction

A show that tells a story of history using modern revolutionary technologies as a basis for its unprecedented art direction demands choreography and stage action that is fresh and innovative.  Terracotta Warriors 3D’s choreographer, Jonathon Feng Han, leads his team to create a show in which all dance movements transcend boundaries of various traditional dance styles while including many elements of Chinese martial arts.  We hope that the mixture of enhanced martial qualities of male dancers juxtaposed with the more poetic and uniquely sensual qualities of Chinese female dancers will provide fresh visual perspective.

Jonathon Feng Han,  Principal Choreographer & Staging Director  

Jonathon Feng Han is a National Class I dancer in China and started his work in choreography with the Action-Musical, Tang Concubines, produced by Sight, Sound & Action in 2006.  His first outing as a choreographer won him and Tang Concubines the prestigious Toronto Dora Award for Best Choreography.  With his second choreography effort for Sight, Sound & Action’s Monkey King, Jonathon and the show won a second Dora Award for Best Choreography in 2010.  In 2011, he choreographed a piece for the Beijing Acrobatic Troupe and won the prestigious Golden Chrysanthemum Award.  Jonathon owes his rapid rise in the world of choreography to his remarkable record of having performed as principal dancer in hundreds of dance dramas while touring with Sight, Sound & Action in North America.  Very few national class dancers in China have ever had such extensive experience on the international stage.  

About Dr. Dennis Law

Dr. Dennis Law retired from a career as a well-known surgeon in Denver, Colorado in 2001.  Dr. Law started in the field of entertainment by producing Warriors of Virtue in 1996, a high budget family feature film distributed by MGM, Warner Brothers and Columbia Artist worldwide.  In China, he also produced a prize-winning CCTV children’s film Xiwa as well as the acclaimed television series April Rhapsody.  After the acquisition of The Centre in Vancouver for Performing Arts in 2002, Dr. Law became the C.E.O. and President of The Centre and its associated production company Sight, Sound & Action.  Dr. Law has utilized The Centre to act as a launching site for a new genre of musical theater known as Action-Musical.  In order to support these unique productions, he owns the theatrical production company in Beijing, Law Brothers Chinese Performing Arts International.  Since 2002, nine Action-Musicals (Of Heaven & Earth, Terracotta Warriors, Senses, Heartbeat, Tang Concubines, Phoenixia, Heartbeat Hawaii, Monkey King and Senses, Las Vegas Ed.) have been performed nearly a thousand times in major venues of many cities of North America and China, a feat that is without equal in the history of Chinese performing arts abroad.  In 2005, Dr. Law was nominated for a Toronto Dora Award for Best Direction of a Musical for the show Heartbeat.  In addition, among three shows that were entered into competition for these Dora Awards, the productions gathered a total of seven nominations, while Tang Concubines won Dora Awards for Best Costume Design and Best Choreography in 2007 and Monkey King won for Best Choreography in 2010.   During the summer of 2008, three Sight, Sound & Action productions were mounted in thirty-seven performances as an Action-Musical Festival to celebrate the occasion of the Beijing Olympic Games.   The world premiere of the first Chinese Rock-Musical, Monkey King, was history making for Chinese musical theater both in Beijing and worldwide.  In 2011, Monkey King became the first theatrical work ever to be shot and produced as a 3D high-definition movie and Blue-Ray DVD, and this 3D cinematic version went on to win the Best Foreign Film Award at the Korean 3D Film Festival in 2012.  Dr. Law continues to dedicate himself to giving Chinese performing arts a proud legacy in the international marketplace.  His current production of Terracotta Warriors 3D truly makes entertainment history by being the first 3D theatrical show ever.  

DIRECTOR’SNOTES for Terracotta Warriors World first 3D Stage Show

Using an unprecedented 3D LED video wall as the basis of its art direction, Terracotta Warriors 3D becomes the world’s most unique musical theater production.  The world’s first true 3D show puts the audience in an impressive 3D environment in order to enjoy a moving story of transformational love and sacrifice involving the legendary First Emperor of China, 200 BC.

This show makes entertainment history by combining two factors in a manner never achieved before: the realness, spontaneity and risks of real live-action on stage together with the thrill and visual impact of high-definition 3D grand cinema.  Traditional theater has always depended on complicated “fly-systems” with hanging and painted backdrops and more recently on projected digital images.  Terracotta Warriors 3D’s first use of this new and patented 3D LED video wall technology allows the audience to be fully engaged by being part of a three dimensional set where not only does the background truly recess back into space but at times certain stage elements would invade forwards into the audience’s personal space.  This kind of spatial participation with the story and its characters is heretofore unknown in conventional theater. 

It is rare indeed for anyone or any entity to have the opportunity to create something that is truly the first in humankind.  Terracotta Warriors 3D is such a production because it is the very first time in entertainment history that a true high-definition 3D video wall is used as a backdrop for a live-action theatrical dance drama.  The fact that the most famous Chinese story involving one of the “Ancient Wonders of the World” is combined with uniquely spectacular high-tech art direction will certainly make for a compelling theater-going experience.

This Action-Musical is not merely a high-tech theatrical production; it is also a meaningful and engaging story of love and power and transformation.  Although the story of China’s First Emperor is an important part of its history of thousands of years, Terracotta Warriors 3D tells this tale of Emperor Qin Shi Huang differently by letting the audience see this most influential monarch through the eyes of his loyal eunuch, Zhao Gao.  Castrated by the Emperor who was his childhood best friend, Zhao Gao nevertheless served his master faithfully albeit in a conflicted manner; he eye-witnessed the Qin Emperor’s powers and weaknesses, his loves and his fears, his cruelty and his human frailties.  Finally, it was the Emperor’s sudden and unexpected death that allows Zhao Gao to be freed from his emotional conflict and spiritual bondage and be transformed into a new man.  

Welcome to Terracotta Warriors 3D.  I hope this would become for you a thrilling and satisfying journey through musical theater of unprecedented proportions!

Elements of the First 3D Show

World’s first 3D LED video wall for theatrical application by:  Central China Display Laboratories, Ltd.

Visual & Sound Effects by:  Beijing Sky Fire Culture & Communication Co. Ltd

Music Recording and Sound Effects Design by:  Duan Xiaozhou

Visual Effects & Film Editor and Special Effects Supervisor:  Wei Yong

3D Production & Animation by:  Soaring Dragon Culture & Communication Co. Ltd

Project Supervisor:  Wang Zhen

Visual and Sound Effects Director:  Zhang Chao, Zhang Chunmiao

Terracotta Warriors 3D is most grateful for these companies and their talented artists for their expertise and hard work.   Their combined efforts allow the production to truly push the horizons of modern musical theater in a manner never achieved before.

                Jin Tao, 3D and Digital Effects Supervisor, Sight, Sound & Action

Terracotta Warriors 3D Makeup Design

For the purposes of combining a story of antiquity with futuristic art direction, Mr. Jia Lei, one of the youngest and most recognized makeup designers of his generation, provides totally new designs for this 3D edition.  He has artistic license to be more surreal, dramatic and non-traditional in his approach.  In this manner, the audience can more readily feel the impact of the mysterious culture of ancient China. 

Jia Lei, Makeup Designer

Born in 1983, Mr. Jia has become one of China’s most sought-after and most decorated theatrical makeup designers.  He has served in the capacity of Makeup Art Director for over thirty dance dramas, ten musicals, six acrobatic circuses and nine large-scale tourist galas.  In addition to this large body of work, Jia Lei has won numerous accolades, including “China’s Top Ten Makeup Art Directors” in 2003 and “Asia’s Top 100 Makeup Designers” in 2004.  In 2008, he was the Makeup Art Director for both the opening and closing ceremonies of the Beijing Paralympic Games.  In 2010, he was in charge of all makeup art direction for the opening ceremonies of the Guangzhou Asian Games and was designer-in-charge for the Shanghai World Expo show segment, “The Attraction of Beijing”.  For Sight, Sound & Action, Jia Lei created spectacular makeup and body painting designs for the show, Senses – Las Vegas in 2012. 

Music

The music score for Terracotta Warriors 3D is based on the original orchestral score composed by noted Chinese composer, Hao Weiya, in Beijing.  Laced by passages of Qin Qiang, the oldest recorded form of opera in world history created in Xian, the capital city of the Qin Dynasty, the music provides a memorable impact for the audience as they are brought back to the second century BC.  Yet for this historical subject to be brought to life with this kind of futuristic art direction, it is necessary to add new music, percussion music and surround sound effects in order to be fully appreciated by modern audiences.    

                            Jin Tao, Music Supervisor, Sight, Sound & Action Ltd.

Jin Tao --- Digital Effects Supervisor, Sound Designer, New Music Composer

Mr. Jin Tao has been associated with the North American production company Sight, Sound & Action for over ten years, serving as its sound designer and percussionist.  In more recent times, his expertise have shifted towards both creating modern music and sound designs as well as new digital effects as they apply to 3D applications in a theatrical setting.  Having had extensive experience touring as a performing artist in North America for a decade, Jin Tao’s expertise is invaluable for creating artistic elements that suit the taste of international audiences.   

Beijing Entertainment : Blog

Beijing Entertainment : Blog

Terracotta Warriors 3D Stage Show Production Credits

Terracotta Warriors 3D --- Production Credits

Sight, Sound & Action and Guanchen Media present

       

Terracotta Warriors 3D

Written, Produced & Directed by:  Dennis K. Law MD

Executive Producers:  Joseph & Loretta Law

                                    Alyssa Xiaoli Wang Law

 Liu Bing

Art Direction by: Dennis K. Law MD

Original Scenic Design by: Tu Juhua

Digital Effects Supervision by:  Jin Tao

Visual & Sound Effects by: Beijing Sky Fire Culture & Communication Co. Ltd

3D Production & Animation by: Soaring Dragon Culture & Communication Co. Ltd

Original Music by: Hao Weiya

New Music & Sound Supervision by: Jin Tao

Sound Design by: Duan Xiaozhou, Zhang Haikun

Costume Design by: Mo Xiaomin

Supplemental Costumes Designed by: Ah Kuan

Choreography by:  Jonathon Feng Han

Supplemental Choreography by: Chen Jiao, Sun Chenxue, Gao Shiqi

Martial Arts Choreography by: Wang Xiaolei

Makeup Design by: Jia Lei

Lighting Design by:  Dennis K. Law MD

         

A production by:

Law Brothers Chinese Performing Arts International, Beijing

Program/Story

Program/Story

Prologue --- discovery of the tomb of terracotta warriors.

Scene 1---The Final Victory --- Qin army conquers the Yin state, its last opponent, to unite the country.

Scene 2---The Coronation --- Qin Shi Huang is at last crowned as the First Emperor of the unified China.

                  Muse’s song: “Life’s an unpredictable journey”

Scene 3---Selection of the Favorite Concubine --- Emperor Qin selects Meng Ying as his most favorite    concubine.

  Muse’s song: “Life’s an unpredictable journey”

Scene 4---Celebration of Unification --- celebration of China’s unification of its currency, weights and measure, language and laws.

Scene 5---Conspiracy Revealed --- Eunuch Zhao Gao, Emperor’s childhood best friend castrated to serve the court, reveals that the Queen Mother is having an illicit sexual relationship with his Minister Lu.

Scene 6---Queen Mother’s Sexual Escapade --- Minister Lu seduces the Queen Mother and is arrested by Qin soldiers.

Scene 7---Five-Horse Execution --- for the capital crime against the State, Minister Lu is executed in a manner common for that period of history.

Scene 8---Fear of Confucius --- Emperor’s long fear of Confucian teachings is revealed as a nightmare encounter with the famed philosopher.

                  Muse’s song: “May be Emperor of all time, but a cruel legacy you’ll leave behind”

Scene 9---Romantic Rendezvous --- Zhao Gao secretly leads Meng Ying back to her village to visit her real lover, Yang Ming.

                  Muse’s song: “ I have strength to fly”

Scene 10 ---Confiscation of Weapons --- Emperor fears rebellion and orders that all weapons in China be confiscated.

Scene 11 ---Celebration of the Realm --- Power of the Emperor’s rule is celebrated while all metals harvested from seized weapons are converted to giant gold statues in tribute to the realm.

Scene 12 ---Assassinations --- Emperor Qin becomes increasingly oppressive, provoking many assassination attempts.

Scene 13 ---Search for Immortality --- The Emperor often frets about his mortal life and seeks counsel from priestesses looking for the elixir of immortality.

Scene 14 ---World’s First Cultural Revolution --- Continuing fear over Confucian teachings leads the Emperor to burn books and scholars.

Scene 15 ---Impossible Love --- Concubine Meng Ying visits Yang Ming who is now a laborer at a Great Wall construction site.  True love can never be as Qin soldiers separate the lovers and imprison Yang Ming.

                     Muses’s song: “True love for a moment is better than none at all”

Scene 16 ---Pleading for Mercy --- Meng Ying begs for her lover’s life with Emperor Qin.

                     Muses’s song: “ Life is but a fragile flower”

Scene 17 ---Widespread Uprisings --- Rebellion against the Emperor’s rule arises everywhere.

Scene 18 ---Concubine’s Ultimate Sacrifice --- Confronted with Yang Ming’s body, Meng Ying’s grief overwhelms her as she makes the ultimate sacrifice of her life.

Muse’s song: “For all wealth and glory, what’s left are shadow warriors”

Scene 19 ---Death of the Emperor --- During an inspection tour of the country, the Emperor kills a whale on an ocean trip.  Soon after, he unexpectedly dies from a sudden illness.  Zhao Gao, the eunuch, is finally liberated from the Emperor’s bondage; immediately shaking off his feminine traits, Zhao Gao is transformed spiritually into a man once again.  

                     Muse’s song: “For all wealth and glory, what’s left are shadow warriors”

Scene 20 ---Funeral Requiem --- the grand ceremony includes the live burial of the Emperor’s concubines.

Scene 21 ---March of the Terracotta Warriors --- an epilogue depicting the underworld where the ghostly terracotta warriors of the Emperor witness the continuing love triangle between the Emperor and his favorite concubine and her real life lover.  In death, the true lovers win while the ghostly warriors devour the Emperor. 

Art Direction

Dennis K. Law, MD,  Art Director 

The ability to combine high-definition 3D cinema with live action theater is a dream come true.  Terracotta Warriors 3D lets a two thousand year old story come to life using a backdrop of unprecedented 3D digital matte paintings and 3D animation --- truly the first in the history of stage entertainment.  This turned out to be an exceptionally challenging task because I had to push the creative envelope at almost every level.  After all, this was a territory where no one had ever been to before.  I believe the efforts were worthwhile because the audience can now be more immersed into the midst of the action like never before.  

                                                                            

Tu Juhua,  Set Designer

This conversion of the original edition of Terracotta Warriors to its new 3D edition makes use of the original set design conceptual paintings by Chinese set designer, Tu Juhua, well-known for his extensive repertoire in the recent history of Chinese cinema.  Most notable in his designs for motion picture is the construction of the world famous architectural movie set representing the Qin Dynasty in the renowned film, The Emperor and the Assassin, winning the Art Direction prize in 1999 at the Cannes Film Festival.  This should make Mr. Tu truly the ranking authority in the understanding of art, culture and history of the Qin dynasty.

  

3D《兵马俑》以及最初版本的所有集设计概念都是由中国著名的设计师杜局华亲手打造，他有

很多的优秀作品频繁出现在中国近代电影中，其中最受好评和追捧的设计作品就是著名电影 《

荆轲刺秦王》，并在1999年的戛纳电影节上荣获最佳艺术指导奖。这也让杜先生成为了对秦朝

艺术,文化,历史深有了解的权威人士。

The World’s First 3D Show!

The increasing popularity of 3D cinema is undeniable.  The increasing proportion of movies made in the 3D format can be attributed to the audience’s preference for storytelling that is visually grand and impressive.  Despite a small number of detractors, the momentum of 3D moviemaking surges forward relentlessly for one and only reason - true high definition 3D thrusts the audience right into the space of the action on screen.  Therefore, the audience feels an immersive involvement it has never experienced before.  It is no longer outside looking in.For the first time in world history, Terracotta Warriors 3D provides the same intensity and involvement for the audience attending a theatrical stage production.  By combining live stage action with 3D scenic design and animation, the show allows the location where the story takes place to recess deeply into backspace or at times protrude and invade the audience’s space.  This gives the audience a thrill that is unprecedented.  However, creating this entertainment history would not have been possible without Law Brothers Chinese Performing Arts International first purchase and use of a newly patented high-definition LED video wall capable of delivering high-resolution 3D images consistently.  This proprietary video screen uniquely allows the audience to enjoy this spectacular and dimensional art direction and staging environment by wearing only passive 3D glasses commonly used in cinemas everywhere.  My production company and I are humbled by the opportunity to bring to you an artistic creation that is truly the very first in the world.  Where we fail to meet your expectations, we plead for your understanding because we are merely courageous enough to test the waters like no one has ever done before.  Where we are successful in unusually entertaining you, we are truly grateful for the opportunity to share with you the excitement of creating something that was never before possible.  I sincerely hope that Terracotta Warriors 3D uniquely brings to life for you one of the world’s most legendary figures of history.  By doing so, it becomes our fateful destiny to utilize the true history of the world’s first and only entombed terracotta army (certainly one of the most important ancient wonders of the world) and transform it into the first 3D show in world history! For the members of the audience that are Chinese nationals, take pride that this history-making show is happening in your capital city of Beijing.  For those that are visitors to China, we hope that your experience with Terracotta Warriors 3D would make your trip to China even more memorable.         

What constitutes a true 3D show?

Although many people have experienced 3D movies, no one has, up till now, really seen a true 3D theatrical show.  The reason for this is simple.  Until Terracotta Warriors 3D at the Da Yin Theater in Beijing, no producer has ever had the technological tools to provide a 3D backdrop for a stage production.  It is a fact that seeing things in true 3D demands the use of some kind of 3D glasses.  There are claims about the availability of 3D video screens without requiring glasses, but even the latest examples I have seen are blurry, often show objects with double outlines, and can reveal half-decent images only if the viewer is situated dead-center to the screen.  With using either passive or active 3D glasses (active denotes the need for batteries), 3D viewing can be excellent with the use of advance 3D projectors casting the digital images onto a projection screen.  However, this type of 3D projection is ideal only in a darkened cinema but particularly troublesome for a stage show in which the required lighting on stage significantly washes out the projected images.  Other commonly described imitators of 3D projection include holography or another process known as “3D mapping”.  I have worked with both of these phenomena over the past three years and found them to be severely lacking.  Holography, by definition, is not even 3D and all images must be seen frontally in one plane.  “3D mapping” may allow certain images to be seen three-dimensionally, but it only works satisfactorily if the projection surface has architectural qualities while the degree of protrusion of the 3D images away from the screen is quite disappointing. A new dawn has arrived with the installation of the unique, first-of-its kind 3D LED video wall that acts as the backbone of art direction for Terracotta Warriors 3D.  For the first time in world history, a 3D LED video wall with unprecedented qualities acts as the scenic backdrop for a stage production.  Not only does this video screen provide high-definition images, it does so with the viewer wearing non-battery powered glasses with unsurpassed brightness and color saturation, with a positive 3D protrusion of nearly eighty-five percent of the distance to the viewer, and a viewing angle that is greater than 120 degrees.  These are the features that make Terracotta Warriors 3D into a show like no other before it.    We hope that this will become a transforming theatrical experience!