Empress Dowager Cixi, as a person who held more power than the emperor in the Qing court at that time, and she was also a very fond of watching plays, so she was far superior in various specifications of watching plays. It is said that there are four commonly used stages in the court of Zijincheng, and Empress Dowager Cixi built a bigger stage in the Summer Palace on this basis. This stage in the Summer Palace has three floors and the height is 2 1 m, which can be said to be the largest existing ancient stage in China.

It is said that Empress Dowager Cixi will go to the theatre every time she goes to the Summer Palace. She has the most time, spending more than forty days in the Summer Palace in a year. In addition to the burial period of Emperor Xianfeng and Emperor Tongzhi, there are also some turbulent periods of Eight-Nation Alliance's invasion of China, so it can be said that the rhythm of Cixi Theatre will never be disturbed by others. Cixi also has high requirements for the content of drama scripts. It can be said that she is a monk in the drama world. She also asked that the costumes and performances of the drama actors should be in place, and there should be no mistakes in all aspects of the performance. Once there is any mistake, the perpetrator and the relevant responsible person will be severely punished.

It is said that Cixi's favorite old student often performed for her in her later years, but once the old student was seriously ill and dying, he stayed out of the palace for a long time, which made Cixi feel unhappy. So Cixi asked the old man's son to carry him into the palace to pay his respects. Seeing that he was dying, Cixi ordered him not to die. After the old man got this order, his illness actually recovered.

Although this sounds a bit mythical, it certainly reflects Cixi's high demands for drama. ?