The black comedy “Scholar and Hangman” will be staged in Shenzhen in December.

Directed by young director Guo Xiaonan and produced by the Shanghai Drama Art Center, this comedy features a story in the late Qing Dynasty (1644-1911).

A scholar who fails several times to pass the imperial examination at county level becomes more determined than ever to try to pass the examination. His neighbor, a hangman, is also very interested in his job and often talks about the cruel torture inflicted on prisoners sentenced to death.

However, in 1905, the government suddenly quit imperial examinations and torture. The two people in previously opposing positions began to face the same future. The hangman decided to open a butcher’s shop and finally the scholar, who had no other way to make a living, became his partner.

Time: 8 p.m., Dec. 4, 5

Tickets: 80-380 yuan

Reservations: 11185,

8981-2344

Venue: Shenzhen Auditorium (深圳会堂)

Add: 7 Shangbu Road Central, Futian District (福田区上步中路7号)

Buses: 2, 4, 8, 12, 25, 65, 202

Metro: Ke Xue Guan Station (Science Museum Station 科学馆站), Exit A