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Renowned performing artist Zhang Jinlai, better known by his stage name Liu Xiao Ling Tong, returned to his hometown — Shangyu district in Shaoxing, Zhejiang province — on May 22, where he met with local students and shared stories at the Monkey King Museum.

The 1986 TV series Journey to the West achieved an 89.4 percent audience rating and has been rebroadcast more than 3,000 times, with total viewings approaching 6 billion. Zhang's portrayal of Sun Wukong (the Monkey King) in the series has become an enduring icon of Chinese popular culture.

Zhang performs a signature move of the Monkey King. [Photo/Tide News]

The Monkey King Museum focuses on the four-generation legacy of the "Zhang Family's Monkey Play". Through immersive installations, film clips, and artifact displays, it traces the historical evolution of Shaoxing Opera's Monkey Play tradition.

Zhang's great-grandfather Zhang Tingchun pioneered monkey performances using wooden masks, while his grandfather Zhang Yisheng founded Shanghai's first Shaoxing Opera theater after sustaining serious stage injuries.

His father Zhang Zongyi formalized the distinctive "Zhang Family's Monkey Play" style, blending human, simian, and divine elements into his interpretation of Sun Wukong.

During the event, Zhang guided students through the museum, sharing behind-the-scenes stories from the filming of Journey to the West and explaining the cultural symbolism behind the Monkey King.

He said that the character embodies perseverance, ambition, and optimism — values he encouraged students to embrace while integrating traditional culture into their modern lives.