The Chinese opera "Liaozhai: Purple Tail" is staged at the 33rd Cairo International Festival for Experimental Theatre (CIFET) in Cairo, Egypt, Sept. 4, 2026. (Xinhua/Ahmed Gomaa)

　　by Mahmoud Fouly

　　CAIRO, Sept. 6 (Xinhua) -- With a spotlight on him, a Chinese actor slowly descended from the stage and made his way through the aisles of a packed Cairo theatre, delivering an anguished soliloquy amid warm applause.

　　It was one of several moments when performers of "Liaozhai: Purple Tail," an experimental Chinese Xiju production, moved beyond the stage and into the audience during their performance at the 33rd Cairo International Festival for Experimental Theatre (CIFET).

　　The Chinese production, presented by Wuxi Xiju Theatre, brought to life a story weaving together the human and supernatural worlds.

　　"For moments, we felt we had been transported from Cairo to China," Hamada Shousha, an Egyptian actor, director and theatre professor at Heliopolis University, told Xinhua.

　　"We did not just see and hear the story; we lived its atmosphere," he said, noting "the costumes, music and presentation all carried a distinctly Chinese character."

　　The Chinese opera "Liaozhai: Purple Tail" is staged at the 33rd Cairo International Festival for Experimental Theatre (CIFET) in Cairo, Egypt, Sept. 4, 2026. (Xinhua/Ahmed Gomaa)