“Broken-Winged Angel”: Stage Play Depicting The Life of Christian Liao Zhi to be Shown in Hong Kong

Liao Zhi
Liao Zhi
By Ruth WangDecember 10th, 2015

She used to be a dance teacher in Hanwang town, Mianzhu city in Sichuan province before but she lost her mother-in-law, her daughter and her legs in the Wenchuan earthquake, and after which, her husband also divorced with her. However, disaster and abandonment did not crush her. Because of God, she experienced true rebirth. And just like a phoenix after nirvana, she found herself and she is still dancing while wearing artificial limbs. She came to the rescue and relief line after the Lushan earthquake and she found her true love and went into the marriage hall again. She wrote a book to share testimony of her life.

She is the Christian Liao Zhi. The stage play "Broken-Winged Angel" adapted from her real life story will be shown consecutively for six times onstage in the Performing Arts Hall of the Kwai Tsing Theatre in Hong Kong on December 17th to 20th. This drama is directed by the non-profit organization, "Hong Kong Grand Stage Troupe".

On November 24th, Liao Zhi shared the news on Weibo. Many netizens felt grateful because of the news and continued to cheer for Liao Zhi's life. Some netizens gave Liao Zhi the blessings of "great, come on. God loves you!"  Someone also said s/he often read Liao Zhi's book and said, "I like you. God bless you greatly." Some Shanghai netizens said they bought tickets to the six performances  and would fly to Hong Kong to see it while another said that it would be better if Liao Zhi played her role personally.

Lee Wai Cheung served as the director and screenwriter of the stage play and the stage play "Broken-Winged Angel" was held in a conference in Hong Kong in October. Actors included are Liu Kai-Chi, Amy Chan, Cheng Tse Sing, Yang Wei Ying, Ying Cheong Yau, Tan Zhi Ling, Guo Qian Heng, etc. Many leading roles share the incentive brought by Liao Zhi's story in their life. Liu kai-chi and Amy Chan learned and experienced how to dance while sitting on a wheelchair personally.

Liao Zhi had been buried under the ruins for 26 hours in the 5·12 Wenchuan earthquake in 2008. Her daughter and her mother-in-law around her were gone and she was the only survivor in the building. She shared her salvation experience and said that her father waited for her and called her from outside the ruins after the earthquake. At that time, there were aftershocks and therescuers advised him to hide but he was not willing to give up which was testament to a father's love. In the face of losing the life he loved, he was surprisingly optimistic and grateful.

Liao Zhi wrote in her Weibo: "Jesus, I thought about many times, if I had not known you, maybe I had left this cruel world. I was not a strong person, although the world used this word to describe me, but You knew, I was not." It was the God that Liao Zhi knew in the disaster that reversed her heart and gave her the biggest support. She realized the eternity, had no blame and hatred in the greatest misery, and offered endless love for the Lord that let her live in the heaven and earth in return.

She was an amputation survivor but disaster didn't overwhelm her passion for singing and dancing. After standing up, she just wrote and played the "Encouragement" within 60 days; she still burns with the passion of life on the stage with her disabled body and testifies as a victory and endurance life to the world. Therefore, the name "Liao Zhi" is known in China and she has become the moving figure who stood up from Wenchuan earthquake.

Liao Zhi also attended a program called "Dance Out My Life" on CCTV Channel 1. It broadcasted Liao Zhi's first barefoot performance "Am I the One You Love Most" with her dream helper people, Yang Zhigang, hailed as "Dance on the Point." CCTV1 program's Weibo commented that it was "mapping the life brilliance forever". Liao Zhi confession in Weibo: "Each of my actions was to transfer the positive energy to the program "Speak Now."

Liao Zhi was also invited to share her life journey in the CCTV program "Speak Now," she said: "Even though I lost my legs, I still felt grateful," "The earthquake let me understand the meaning of life," "The disaster was a good teacher," " To stand up again, I got freedom and satisfaction."

In September 2013, Liao Zhi published the book, "Thanks to the Good Pleasure of Life," where she shared her favorite a scripture: "Suffering produces perseverance; perseverance, character; character, hope, and hope does not disappoint us." This was the true portrayal of her life, but also born fruit because of her strong perseverance. On December 1st, 2013, during the Shanghai International Marathon, Liao Zhi, who wore an artificial limb, was  running with a smile had become one of the most beautiful scenery during that day.

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