2002. More recently, a Chinese-language version of Mamma Mia ! that toured in August 2011 grossed 20 million yuan -LRB- $3.2 million -RRB- in less than a month and according to the China Daily, a 2013 production of The Phantom of the Opera sold out five months before its premiere. But high ticket prices mean these shows reach a limited audience, and it's typically only the most accessible Broadway hits that resonate with a Chinese audience, says Zhou Yinchen, the head of the Folk Music and Musical Research Center at Peking University's Academy of Arts. Mamma Mia !is entertaining, that's why Chinese accept it, she says. Of course there are other Broadway musicals but it's only those with the highest entertainment value work in China, she adds. Nonetheless, the rave reviews audiences have given to these shows make musical producers like San Bao confident that combining Broadway showmanship with Chinese plot lines will one day result in a sure-fire hit. Cartoon character As well as China's imperial past, San Bao has also made shows about a Chinese cartoon character similar to Tintin, and the Chinese Communist Party's Long March -- a 6,000 mile journey that helped cement Mao Zedong's stature as a great leader. San Bao says one of the biggest challenges he faces is the dearth of all-round performers. Few Chinese actors and actresses have equally strong singing and dancing skills