The avant-garde paradox: the more experimental, the more audiences
Without expert endorsement or advertising, he speaks avant-garde theatre directly to young audiences—and thirty years later, these productions never play to empty houses. *Rhinoceros in Love* has even cycled through eleven generations of actors.
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Theatre market broke 100 billion, then started falling
Research data cited by Luo Yonghao showed China's theatre market at roughly 8+ billion yuan pre-pandemic, climbing steadily to break 100 billion last year. But Meng Jinghui confirms it has since contracted. Concerts, however, are booming against the trend; stadiums the size of Beijing's Bird's Nest can now run ten consecutive shows, setting records. Neither blamed cultural recession. Instead they pinpointed channel fragmentation: as entertainment options multiplied, theatre audiences scattered across alternatives. Paradoxically, the resulting scarcity of live experience became the very driver pushing concert sales higher.
— Luo YonghaoSystems that feel stable fear anyone who might change them
When Luo asked why his alma mater never invited him back to teach, Meng's answer was revealing: a well-established system generates its own energy and momentum. Introduce someone with ‘disruptive genes,’ and that energy dissolves—the system stops being itself. This isn't institutional intolerance. Rather, any functioning system instinctively resists people who might destabilize its inner balance, regardless of their achievement. It's a survival reflex.
— Meng JinghuiFinancial cushion is what enables true artistic rebellion
In 1996-97, Meng received a fellowship to study in Japan worth 17,000 yen daily. For six months, he ate the cheapest beef bowls he could find, systematically hoarding cash. When he returned to China with over 40,000 yuan—a small fortune then—his classmate was shocked, thinking he'd taken drugs; he'd simply lost that much weight from saving. But that ‘fortune’ gave him the nerve to return and stage three plays back-to-back, becoming what he calls ‘an upstart in theatre.’ His later reflection: intellectuals need financial cushion to maintain dignity and creative integrity. Without it, your artistic choices start to warp.
— Meng JinghuiA theatrical hit needs no marketing budget to sustain for decades
Financing *Rhinoceros in Love* meant mortgaging his apartment. The budget was meager—two or three hundred thousand yuan. Withdrawing cash was terrifying: he made three separate trips to the bank, carried 50,000 yuan in a backpack the first time, and spent the entire subway ride watching everyone around him as a potential threat. There was zero advertising budget. Instead, word-of-mouth took over. Result: forty performances in the first year, 500,000 yuan in revenue. The play never stopped running. It's now been performed across eleven generations of actors—proof that if avant-garde work truly captures the mood of its time, it doesn't need promotion. It becomes self-propagating.
— Meng JinghuiRadical theatre draws bigger audiences, not smaller
Meng's generation did avant-garde work by deliberately bypassing the establishment path—no expert seminars, no waiting for expert approval. Instead, they built direct connections with young audiences through grassroots media and word of mouth, letting viewers grow alongside the creators rather than expecting them to accept a finished aesthetic. When Meng told international colleagues ‘The more avant-garde we were, the more audiences came,’ they didn't believe him. But that was the reality. It directly contradicts the assumption that experimental work means niche audiences. Young viewers were willing to be ‘transformed’ into the next generation of audience members, not passively accept pre-formed taste.
— Meng JinghuiAdmitting you're wrong in rehearsal speeds the work up
When younger, Meng was an absolute authority in the rehearsal room—even when his instinct was faulty, he'd stubbornly defend it rather than admit error. Now he's different. He says plainly in front of the cast: ‘I was wrong. That's not right. Let me think about this again. Let's go eat, then come back and fix it.’ His insight: there's a visceral pleasure in solving the actual problem instead of winning an argument. The dignity younger people guard—not admitting fault—is exactly what middle-aged creators should shed. The more you can let it go, the more efficient rehearsals become.
— Meng JinghuiYoung Chinese audiences follow you awhile, then exit
Meng has noticed a persistent pattern: young Chinese audiences will follow a creator for a time, but around age thirty, they step off the bus and stop engaging. Foreign audiences behave differently—once they board, they rarely get off. They stay. At Rolling Stones concerts in Shanghai, the audience is almost entirely young Chinese; foreign audiences span from twentysomethings to people in their sixties. One reason: adults get busy and drift from the cultural interests that once moved them. But causally intertwined with this is a second reality: Mandarin popular music itself lacks substantial works that keep feeding adult listeners. The ecosystem doesn't hold them.
— Meng JinghuiInternational theatre at epic scale finds full houses in China
Last year Wuzhen Theatre Festival hosted *The City of Humans* from Germany—five ancient Greek plays woven into one arc, performed by a 100+ person ensemble with over 400 props. Nine hours of theatre daily, spread across three days. The production was so technically intricate (lighting, sound design) that this was the first time the company had ever toured it internationally. It sold out both runs in the 1200-seat theatre. Around the same time, Meng saw a 24-hour uninterrupted dance performance in Belgium—dancers slept onstage when tired. Scale and format like this simply didn't exist in Chinese theatre festivals before. They're being imported one by one.
— Meng JinghuiIn their own words · checked verbatim
I can understand it completely. Once a system is established, the system generates a certain energy. If I were to enter it, I'd disrupt that energy—make it cease to be itself.
我倒挺能理解的 就是这一个体系 一旦建成了以后 这个体系 他会产生出 一些能量 这个能量 如果我要去了以后 我会打 打破这个能量 让这个能量 他不是本身了
Meng Jinghui1:10:50
A classmate picked me up from the airport and pulled me aside, embarrassed: 'Did you get into drugs?' I said no. 'It's just—I saved money over there. I have money. I'm not scared.'
我那个同学 大学同学来接我 就给我叫到旁边 不好意思 说你是不是吸毒了 我说没有 我说就是 这 咱就是有钱呢 存钱去了 咱有钱 咱不怕
Meng Jinghui1:49:20
I had to make three separate withdrawals. The first time I used a backpack, then I put that 50,000 yuan—it was all cash then—right on me. Then I got on the subway. Everyone around looked like a criminal.
我得分三次 我第一次就取了背个包 完了以后 把那个钱五万块钱 那时候还现金 然后我就背在前面 背着 完了坐地铁 看前后左右都像坏人
Meng Jinghui1:56:24
The more avant-garde we were, the more audiences came. You say it won't work; I say that's the reality. That's just how it is.
我们越先锋 观众越多 跟你说不会 你说就是现实 是这样的
Meng Jinghui1:59:26
I was wrong. That's not right. That's not right. Let me think about this again. Let's go eat first, then come back and work on it.
我错了 我这不对 我这不对 你让我 再想一想 我们先去吃个饭 然后回来再弄
Meng Jinghui2:34:53
I never imagined there'd come a day when humans would watch nothing but fifteen-second videos for an entire evening.
我做梦都没想过 就有一天人类会看每一支15秒的视频 然后能看一晚上
Luo Yonghao2:44:08
Chinese young audiences follow you for a time, then they get off. Foreign audiences are different—once they board, they can't get off. They stay.
中国的年轻观众 他陪你走一段时间 他就下车了 外国不是 他上了车了以后 他下不了这车 他一直
Meng Jinghui3:05:37
Figures
| Daily allowance during Japan study fellowship | 17,000 yen | 1:46:19 |
| Savings accumulated over six months in Japan | Over 40,000 yuan | 1:48:20 |
| Wuzhen Theatre Festival annual audience (then to now) | From 440,000 to 200,000 | 1:44:19 |
| *Rhinoceros in Love* cast lineage | Reached eleventh generation of actors | 2:01:26 |
Glossary
- Theatre of the Absurd
- 20th-century Western theatre movement that expressed existential absurdity through illogical plots; key works include *Waiting for Godot* and *Rhinoceros*.
- Stanislavski system
- Russian realist acting method developed by theatre master Stanislavski; long adopted as the core training system in Chinese drama education.
How to listen
Entrepreneurs and independent creators grappling with market appeal, plus observers of theatre industry and attention economy.
Opening pleasantries and childhood anecdotes are low on information; feel free to skip ahead.