Tears and laughter

The stage is set for a darkly humorous adaptation of Liu Zhenyun's novel about a woman desperately trying to restore her tattered reputation, Chen Nan reports.

Chinese novelist Liu Zhenyun's work, I Did Not Kill My Husband, which was published in 2012, follows a woman, Li Xuelian, who lives in rural China and spends over 20 years earning back society's respect after her former husband tarnished her reputation.

When Liu was told that the novel was going to be adapted into a comedy, he was intrigued.

"The line between comedy and tragedy is blurry. Li Xuelian's story is sad, apparently, but it's a great story for a comedy. A good comedy makes you laugh even as you despair," says Liu.

Directed by Ding Yiteng and produced by Drum Tower West Theater, a private theater located in the capital's downtown, the play, also titled I Did Not Kill My Husband, is going to tour nationwide from the weekend through June.

On Friday and Saturday, it will be staged in Guangzhou, Guangdong province, as the opening show for the Women Arts Festival of Guangzhou Grand Theater. Then it will go to other Chinese cities, including Nanjing in Jiangsu province, Hangzhou in Zhejiang province, Shanghai and Beijing.

Liu, a winner of China's top literary prize, the Mao Dun Literature Award, says the novel was his first attempt to write from a female perspective. Known for his humor and keen observations, Liu describes the protagonist as "persistent and patient".