Mao Weitao (born 8 August 1962) is a Chinese Yue opera actress-singer who usually portrays '' Sheng'' roles (i.e. male characters). A founding member of the acclaimed Zhejiang Xiaobaihua Yue Opera Troupe who also served as its president from 1999 to 2018, Mao Weitao is a household name among Yue opera listeners. For non-opera listeners, she is best known for her portrayal of Dongfang Bubai in the 2001 TV series '' Laughing in the Wind''. Mao Weitao is one of only 4 people who have won the Plum Blossom Grand Prize, given to those who continue to be active and innovative in theatre or opera after winning the Plum Blossom Prize twice. She is also the vice-chairperson of China Theatre Association. She was a member of the 7th,

8th Eighth is ordinal form of the number eight. Eighth may refer to: * One eighth, , a fraction, one of eight equal parts of a whole * Eighth note (quaver), a musical note played for half the value of a quarter note (crotchet) * Octave, an interval b ...

, 9th, 10th, and

11th National People's Congress The 11th National People's Congress (NPC) met for a 5-year term, from 2008 to 2013. It held five annual two week plenary sessions during this period. It succeeded the 10th National People's Congress. There were 2,987 deputies elected to the ...

. For years Mao Weitao has taken steps to "modernize" Yue opera. She has recently secured investment from billionaires

Jack Ma Ma Yun (; born 10 September 1964), or more commonly referred as Jack Ma, is a Chinese businessman and philanthropist. He is the founder of the Jack Ma Foundation, and co-founder of Alibaba Group and Yunfeng Capital. As of May 2025, Ma's ne ...

and Song Weiping to realize some of her more ambitious plans regarding Yue opera.

Early life

Career

From 1999 to 2018 she has been the president of Zhejiang Xiaobaihua Yue Opera Troupe, with which she debuted in 1984.

Reform

Baiyue Cultural Creativity

In 2018, Mao Weitao quit her position in the Xiaobaihua Troupe to become chairwoman of Baiyue Cultural Creativity Co., which was registered in 2016 with the investment of Zhejiang billionaires

and Song Weiping. The company seeks to provide services on theatre administration, play production, international collaboration, art education, theatre talent agency, as well as theatre investment, etc. One of Baiyue's first projects was the construction of China Yue Theatre (中国越·剧场) in Hangzhou in 2018, whose state-of-art, butterfly-shaped complex was designed by C. Y. Lee.

Opera roles

References

* * Chinese television actresses Chinese film actresses Yue opera actresses Singers from Zhejiang People from Tongxiang 20th-century Chinese actresses 21st-century Chinese actresses 1962 births Living people 20th-century Chinese women singers 21st-century Chinese women singers Actresses from Jiaxing Musicians from Jiaxing People's Republic of China politicians from Zhejiang Politicians from Jiaxing Male impersonators in Yue opera {{China-actor-stub