Queen Mary PhD students bring Chinese literary classic to the London stage

Produced by Tiantian Xie and co-directed and co-written by Keyuan Zhang and Fiona Zhu, who is also the lead actress, ‘Herstory in History’ premiered in London on 15 and 16 August. Based on the Chinese literary classic ‘The Orphan of Zhao’, the musical reimagines the story through the perspective of Princess Zhuangji, the orphan's mother, whose voice is largely absent from traditional versions of the tale. In doing so, it invites audiences to reconsider whose stories are remembered throughout history. 

Both Tiantian and Keyuan are PhD students in the Department of Drama of the School of Arts, where their academic research has directly informed the development of the production. Their work reflects the University's approach to practice-based research, demonstrating how academic ideas can develop beyond the classroom into professional creative projects with international reach.  

Speaking about the production, Tiantian said: 

“The musical adapts a well-known Chinese classic through a contemporary feminist perspective. Our goal is to introduce Chinese stories to international audiences while demonstrating that Chinese musical theatre can speak to universal themes. It is also an opportunity to present Chinese-language musical theatre in London, with English subtitles, making it accessible to audiences from different backgrounds."  

Keyuan added: 

"Many classic stories, both in China and the West, focus primarily on male protagonists. The musical asks audiences to reconsider whose stories are remembered and whose are forgotten, highlighting women's voices that have been hidden behind traditional historical narratives. I hope audiences leave questioning traditional historical narratives and recognising that history has been shaped by both women and men." 

Following its London premiere, ‘Herstory in History’ will be performed at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe from 25 to 29 August 2026, before travelling to the Shanghai Theatre Festival from 23 to 25 October 2026. The production has also been selected for a solo performance festival in Beijing, with dates currently being finalised.  

Photo credits: Yiqiu Zhang and Wendy Yang.