A popular Chinese TV drama is still seeking a US channel to air its English-language version and enlarge the audience for the saga of love and intrigue in imperial China.

Cao Ping, producer of The Legend of Zhenhuan, said she and her colleagues have contacted several cable channels, some of which have expressed interest. No deal has been struck, however.

The Legend of Zhenhuan, about the machinations among concubines of an emperor during the Qing Dynasty (1644-1911), has been a hit in China since it debuted last year.

In addition to the Chinese mainland, where it earned a 10 percent share of the TV-watching audience in its time slot, the show has drawn big audiences in Singapore, Malaysia and Taiwan. In one month, it also racked up 2.4 billion views on various online platforms.

"We have not decided which channel will show the English version in the US, but the collaboration will not be limited to American channels. We want it to be global," Cao said.

While declining to give a name or other details, the producer said a production company in the United States with a number of Asian-Americans on its staff will re-edit the 76 episodes into six miniseries-like installments and change the soundtrack. In an update to previous interviews she has given about the plans, Cao said this company will reshoot some scenes with some of the original cast and later dub them into English, rather than use subtitles.

After its initial run on the Chinese mainland and elsewhere, The Legend of Zhenhuan was shown on some US-based Chinese-language cable channels. One was SinoVision, which serves about 1 million Chinese-speaking viewers in New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania and Connecticut.

"It was such a success, and it was among the highest-rated TV dramas we've imported from the Chinese mainland," said Xiang Lingling, an employee in SinoVision's programming department.

"We got phone calls from audiences who missed an episode and asked for updates, and from those who requested information for costumes. We even got an American audience member asking for subtitles."

A potential fan is Steve Garcia, a graduate student of political science whose minor is in Chinese language at California State University, Long Beach.

"I'll be thrilled to watch the TV series in America if it'll be broadcast on American channels," said Garcia, who has studied Chinese for a year and a half. "It's very difficult to watch these types of Chinese TV dramas" in the US.

"I just watched a Chinese show, Empire of Silver, through Netflix last week, and I look forward for more shows of its kind because they help me understand more about Chinese culture and language."

Amid speculation over the series' US prospects, people who follow the entertainment industry point out the difficulty of any show getting picked up for television.

Claus Mueller, a New York correspondent for FilmFestivalToday.com, said the show's success in China doesn't guarantee anything in the US. He suggested that pay channels that cater to the Chinese-American community might be a better fit for the drama.

"Success depends in part on how it is placed. Mainstream channels or networks have become more cautious or risk-averse since their audience is shrinking each year," said Mueller, who has served as a judge for the international Emmy awards and as a curator for film festivals.

"Placement on a specialized cable channel which incorporates foreign productions and has an upscale viewership is more likely to be successful," he said.

"Here we have the Sundance Channel and the Independent Film Channel, which provide more foreign material. Other outlets are subscription networks or over-the-air stations in New York, Los Angeles and San Francisco, which are aimed at the Chinese-American audience."

liuyuhan11@chinadailyusa.com

(China Daily 03/22/2013 page10)