Objects of desire

Daily-life objects scattered on the stage play a significant role in the play Made in China. [Photo by Zou Hong/China Daily]

For her, the most interesting aspect of object theater is how people become emotionally attached to their belongings.

Even the most ordinary objects can trigger a burst of memories, she says, adding that the idea of Made in China had occurred to her ever since she established her company.

"We can find the label, 'made in China', almost everywhere around the world, such as the Eiffel Tower souvenirs that are sold in Paris," Saysombat says.

Saysombat is personally connected to China - she was born to a Laotian-Chinese father and a French mother.

She has been learning about Chinese culture since childhood. She first visited the country in 2011, when she performed Room 26, a solo play of the same genre, in Beijing.

Last summer, she also organized a two-week object theater workshop in Beijing, inviting professional artists to join in.

During the workshop, Saysombat found two actors - mime artist Wu Mengyu and Peking Opera actor Si Xianwei - who will perform in Made in China.

Object theater usually has two stable directors who tour different places with a play and invite local volunteers to act in it.

"It's not a show from France that has Chinese actors performing in it," she says of the need to localize the art form.

Si, 29, will display Peking Opera movements while performing two roles - a businessman and a construction worker.

"I won't do any makeup but the characters' moves will be in the style of Peking Opera," says Si, who came to Beijing from Xuchang city in Henan province, to study traditional opera at age 12.