A native of Beijing, Lao She (1899-1966) is a distinguished novelist and playwright. The four-act play The Remnant Fog was written in 1939. Set in Chongqing, the play depicted a corrupt official. An avaricious, lascivious and pretentious bureaucrat, the hero supported the resistance war on one hand and colluded with a Japanese woman spy on the other Later, everything came out and he was arrested. Yet a high-ranking official invited the woman spy to dinner when the police came to arrest her
Lao She intended this comedy to dispel the "remnant fog" wrapping around the resistance war and struck directly at the corrupt regime with satire. Characters in the play have striking personalities and vivid witticism. In November 1939, the play was staged for the first time in Chongqing by the Roar Troupe. |
