"Chinese traditional drama is a fusion of various arts. I hope the French truly understand Chinese traditional drama," said French drama director Patrick Somier, who has been involved in French Chinese drama exchanges for years, in a video interview with Xinhua News Agency. ?? This is a photo of Patrick Somier (left) receiving the "Great Wall Friendship Award" from the Beijing Municipal People's Government in 2010. Xinhua News Agency (photo provided by interviewee) was unaware of the situation and went deep. Somier, who is more than a rare figure this year, began his relationship with Chinese opera twenty years ago. On the occasion of the Cultural Year between China and France, Somier was invited to collaborate with the Beijing Opera Art Vocational College (referred to as "Beijing Opera") to bring Beijing opera to the French stage. That experience allowed him to rediscover the essence of Chinese culture and strengthen his belief in making Chinese opera deeply ingrained in people's hearts in France. Somier admitted that in 2004, when he went to Beijing to negotiate with his partners, "like many Europeans, my understanding of Peking Opera is limited to gorgeous costumes, intense makeup, and superb acrobatics.". "But that time, I was immediately fascinated by this art." The scene in the North Opera classroom shocked Somier greatly: the students learned art at a young age and practiced basic skills diligently; The teacher takes the stage to give lectures, demonstrating, rehearsing, and setting the rhythm for the students; Teachers and students exchange ideas, inherit and innovate around their roles. "In China, traditional drama is the lifelong art of actors, and actors are the embodiment of drama," sighed Somier. This is also the first time he has seen the more tense expressions and actions under the paint and clothing, and the first time he has delved into the characters in the script, such as the stirring stories of ancient Greek tragedies. ? This is a photo of Patrick Somier (in the center of the back row) taking a group photo with the performance team of Beijing Opera Art Vocational College who came to France to perform in front of the MC93 Theater in Bobini, France in 2010. Xinhua News Agency (photo provided by interviewee) is promoting traditional Chinese drama to French audiences, while Somier is dedicated to exploring performance forms. In 2005, the Beijing Opera Performance Troupe moved the Beijing Opera classroom onto the French stage according to Somier's proposal: in the first half, students dressed in casual clothes and appeared on stage without makeup, restoring the basic training of "singing, recitation, and hitting" in the practice room. The teacher went on stage and replaced music and drum beats with hand playing soundboards and oral accompaniment; In the second half, the students drew their faces, put on their costumes, and presented authentic skits such as "Farewell My Concubine". This performance, which combines modern stage art and traditional theatrical art, has attracted more than 20000 viewers. The themed workshop around makeup and body shaping in Beijing Opera has attracted nearly 7000 French students. Somier said he hopes to free French audiences from their "sightseeing" perspective and not just pursue exotic freshness. He believed that "drama is not a consumer product, but a collision between the mind and the soul, a way to approach another culture and language. In addition to making people happy, drama should guide the audience to strive to understand unfamiliar things." Later, Somier and Peking Opera continued their relationship. In 2010, the new version of Beijing opera "Water Margin" created by both parties made its debut in France and received a huge response. Several adaptation experiences have made Somier more interested in traditional Chinese drama and he went to China