Last year, the festival introduced the Granary Reverie segment, which allows young theater practitioners to showcase their avant-garde works in a revamped granary. This year, the segment returns with a focus on female directors.

The script-reading events are set for an upgrade this year. Led by professional directors Ding Yiteng and Yang Ting, the new Qipao Xiju (starting point theater) segment will offer audiences a more immersive experience by combining script reading and live performances.

"We hope that in the future, the festival will become a starting point for global theater, and a platform for the promotion, and even commercial exchanges, of new theater productions," says Huang Lei, cofounder and producing director of the festival.