During an era in which global travel was a grand adventure reserved for the few, the British comic actor Charlie Chaplin and the revered Chinese opera artist Mei Lanfang stood face to face in 1930. Their meeting was transformative—they delved into each other’s artistic worlds, exchanging insights, techniques and stories.
This captivating encounter was brought back to life recently in Beijing during the twoday Beijing Culture Forum, which began on September 14, when Eugene Chaplin, the son of Charlie Chaplin, and Mei Wei, the great-grandson of Mei Lanfang, accomplished the meeting their forefathers promised almost 100 years ago.
This meeting is an example of
