Lao She, probably the most important Chinese literary figure this century, has always been remembered as a man of tragedies. His masterpieces - The Teahouse and The Rickshaw Boy - are both tales of utter despondency. Meanwhile, his life - spent mostly in the clutches of a country savaged by warfare and political upheaval - mirrored the grim landscapes these stories conjured up, ending in suicide amid violent persecution during the Cultural Revolution. Given the reputation Lao has in the minds of the masses, melancholy is inevitable in any event staged to mark the 100th anniversary of the novelist. By choosing a lesser-known satire as their tribute, the Hong Kong Repertory Theatre may raise the eyebrows of many a Lao She aficionado. 'Most people only knew the serious side of him - it is difficult for them to get in touch with the comedies he wrote,' said Ho Wai-lung, director of the company's upcoming rendition of Grand Opening Of A Medical Clinic, a short story Lao wrote at the beginning of the 1930s. 'It might only be several pages long, but the way it caricatures the weakness in humanity is more than accurate - and very biting, too.' One of the many short, sharp satires he wrote during a seven-year teaching tenure in Shandong province, Grand Opening Of A Medical Clinic - first published in the Haste collection in 1934 - described how three swindlers managed to pass themselves off as medical experts in their bogus hospital, an ironically named 'Hospital for the Masses'. The nonchalant manner in which Lao told his story - a detached account of how the trio set up their business, sweet-talked people into having injections of tea, and extorted helpless patients in the middle of operations - portrayed the gullible patients as the black sheep in the scenario. It denounced the blind faith people had in charlatans, a widespread trait during a time when China began to embrace modernity and its effects. What attracted Ho towards Grand Opening was the universality and timelessness of the morals behind the piece. Indeed, Lao's original steered clear of stating the time and place in which the story unfolded. 'It just exposed the hypocrisy entrenched in human beings, how they only have room for advice that they are comfortable with,' Ho said. 'Most of Lao's works have strong, defining historical backgrounds. The lack of such details in Grand Opening was his way of saying that these things can happen anywhere, anytime.' The Repertory's production also refrained from giving a particular time-frame for the story - a backdrop consisting of skyscrapers and characters lusting for fame, fortune and the hip, might suggest a place too close for comfort. 'Somewhere peopled by Chinese' was the most Ho would say. Ho admitted this production was a massive challenge for him and his colleagues. The task of elaborating a surreal short story into a two-hour theatre performance has been a taxing experience. The original story is devoid of in-depth characterisation, sub-plots, even the compulsory cause-and-effect ending. 'It's not like it's a reinterpretation of a play,' Ho said, dissociating this production from renditions of The Teahouse, for example. 'Our production is a creation in itself - we just took the framework and the essential details from Lao She's story and fleshed it out. It's elaboration on a theme.' You might expect a production laden with cynical jabs at modern man, but Ho stressed it was not his aim to judge. 'We are just trying to show the frailty of the human psyche with a sense of humour,' he said. Grand Opening Of A Medical Clinic (in Cantonese). Oct 23-24, Oct 26-31 and Nov 2-7, 7.30pm; Oct 24, Oct 30-31 and Nov 6-7, 2.30pm. Cultural Centre Studio Theatre. Tickets: $90-$160 from Urbtix, 2734 9009
