The drama was financed and produced by JiaoDaoKou Subdistrict Office, Dongcheng District in Beijing. It accurately reflects the historical and cultural changes in South Gong and Drum Alley.
China has a Beijing, Beijing has a Dongcheng and Dongcheng has a South Gong and Drum Alley. Beijing is the national centre of drama culture. Dongchengpossesses 80% of performing groups and location resources in Beijing.Within the scope of the alley, are locatedthe Central Academy of Drama, the National Theatre of China, Beijing Children’s Theatre and Penghao Theatre. Not far from here is Beijing People's Art Theatre. The location of Central Academy of Drama was once the residence of Jin Yunpeng, the acting premier of the Duan Qirui Republican government. There are many historic sites in this area such as Prince Cenggelinqin’s Mansion, Hongchengchou’s garden, Wanrong's former residence, Qi Baishi's former residence, Mao Dun's former residence and so on....The interweaving and fusion of history and reality, tradition and modernity have never stopped in this area. People here including ordinary people and artists have all experienced the great historical process from poverty to the adequate food and clothing, from limitation to richness. There are many fresh and touching stories. The purpose of this drama is to veritablyannotate the changing people and their lives in Dongcheng.
The screenwriter Wang Xiang is a dentist. With the love of drama, in 2014 he personally financed and built a theatre with 86 seats at No.35, East Cotton Hutong,South Gong and Drum Alley. It is the first small theatre which was personally financed since the founding of New China in Beijing as well as in China. It was named "Penghao". It means that it is the ordinary people's theatre. Along with the development of history, more and more people not only seek to meet the needs for material satisfaction but also want to meet more spiritual and cultural needs. They will thus step towards richness and nobleness on both levels of existence and spirit.
The director of the drama, Wang Shaojun graduated from the Central Academy of Drama in China. He was the first theatre post-doctor in China and a former researcher at the Research Institute of Drama of the Chinese Academy of Arts. Now he is deputy director of the acting department of the Academy of Traditional Chinese Opera. The main actors in the drama are mostly young people who graduated fromthe Central Academy of Drama and once lived and studied in South Gong and Drum Alley. It was touching of them to create this realistic drama.
It is reported that the Jiaodaokou Subdistrict Office and Penghao Theatre will continuously produce new drama works. They will also work with other theatres in the region to form a fixed drama culture and art festival in South Gong and Drum Alley step by step. Just like London's West End, Broadway in New York and Drama Street in Seoul, we expect drama street blocks of theatre arts will appear in Beijing in the near future. All of these will add stronger cultural flavour to old Beijing, the old Dongcheng and the old South Gong and Drum Alley.
该剧是北京市东城区交道口街道办事处投资出品，真实反映南锣鼓巷地区历史文化变迁的一部作品。
中国有一个北京，北京有一个东城，东城有一个南锣鼓巷。北京是全国的戏剧文化中心，东城拥有全北京80%的话剧演艺团体、场所资源。锣鼓巷范围内有中戏、国话、北京儿艺、蓬蒿剧场，不远处是人艺。而中央戏剧学院所在地就是原段祺瑞政府代理国务总理靳云鹏旧宅，这一带还有众多的历史遗迹：曾格林沁王府、可园、洪承畴府、婉容故居、齐白石故居、茅盾故居……历史与现实、传统与现代的交织和融合，在这块土地上，从来就没有停止过。在这里生活着的人，包括普通人、艺术家，都一同经历了我们国家由贫困到温饱，由局限到丰富的大的历史进程，有着太多太多的鲜活感人的故事。交道口办事处出品这部话剧，正是想通过截取这样一个细微的片段，来真实的诠释北京东城特定历史人文区域中，变化着的人们和他们的生活。
该剧编剧王翔，是一名牙科医生。一年前出于对话剧的热爱，个人投资在锣鼓巷东棉花胡同35号建起了只有86座的小剧场，这是北京，也是全国建国以后民间投资建设的第一个小剧场，剧场取名“蓬蒿”，意在这是普通人的剧场，随着历史的发展，更多的普通人在满足物质需要的同时，也能满足更多的精神文化需要，不光是在生存层面上，也在心灵层面上，走向富足和高贵。
该剧导演王绍军，是毕业于中央戏剧学院的我国第一个戏剧学博士后、原中国艺术研究院话剧研究所研究员、现为中国戏曲学院表演系副主任。该剧的主要演员也大都是毕业于中戏、在南锣鼓巷地区学习生活过的年轻人。由他们来具体创作这样一部现实主义戏剧，本身就是一件很感人的事情。
据悉，交道口街道办事处、蓬蒿剧场在共同创作完成这部话剧之后，还准备不断地推出新的戏剧艺术作品，并和该地区的其他剧场一起，逐步形成固定的锣鼓巷戏剧文化艺术节，我们期待着在不久的将来，在北京也能出现像伦敦西区、纽约百老汇、首尔的戏剧一条街那样的戏剧艺术街区，为古老的北京、古老的东城、古老的锣鼓巷，增添更浓郁的文化色彩。