Contemporary Legend Theatre ✕ Shakespearean Adaptation "The Prince's Revenge"
Court intrigue, ghost summoning, and ultimate vengeance! An epic portrayal of love, hatred, and human struggle.
Prince Chou Rong of the Northern State challenges Prince Gongsun Yu of the Ding'an State to avenge his father. Chou Rong is defeated, but at that moment, Gongsun Yu receives the tragic news of his father's passing. Stricken with grief, he rushes back to the capital.
Upon his return, he faces a shocking upheaval: his uncle has usurped the throne and his mother, the Queen, has remarried the usurper. While Gongsun Yu is comforted by his lover, Xiao Xiang, their romance is sternly forbidden by her father, Minister Xiao. Later, Gongsun Yu encounters his father's ghost at night and learns the truth of his uncle's murderous conspiracy. Consumed by rage and sorrow, his behavior becomes increasingly erratic.
🎭 Play-within-a-Play ── "Shadows of the Red Candle"
To appease the prince, the King invites a theatrical troupe to perform. Gongsun Yu seizes this opportunity to expose his uncle’s crimes. He selects the play "Shadows of the Red Candle" to mirror the assassination of the former King. Seeing through the prince's intent, the King leaves in a fury. He then plots to murder Gongsun Yu by sending him to a neighboring country under the guise of recuperation.
Later, a heated confrontation breaks out between Gongsun Yu and the Queen in her chambers. In a fit of rage, the prince accidentally kills Minister Xiao, who was hiding behind a curtain to eavesdrop. Gongsun Yu is immediately escorted abroad. On the journey, assassins Fei Li and Jia Xing attempt to execute the King’s death warrant, but Huo Xuguang arrives just in time to rescue the prince.
Devastated by the death of her father, Xiao Xiang loses her mind. Using narcissus flowers as a metaphor for the purity of life, her mourning brings a sense of remorse to the Queen. Meanwhile, the King receives a letter from Gongsun Yu mocking the failed assassination and declaring his revenge. Panicked, the King instigates Xiao Xiang’s brother, Xiao Yi, to challenge Gongsun Yu to a duel. As the Queen enters to announce that Xiao Xiang has drowned, Gongsun Yu is overcome with grief at his lover’s grave.
❖ Finale ── Bloodshed in Ding'an City
Gongsun Yu accepts the public challenge, and the two engage in a fierce duel before the court. During the fight, the Queen accidentally drinks poisoned wine intended for the prince and dies. As Gongsun Yu rushes to her side, he is wounded by Xiao Yi’s poisoned blade. Xiao Yi eventually falls, and with his last breath, Gongsun Yu forces the King to drink the remaining poison, killing him before succumbing to the poison himself.
Prince Chou Rong of the Northern State then leads his army into the city. He stands in the grand hall, stunned by the tragic scene of death and ruin—a sorrowful end that will be remembered for eternity.