Guan Hanqing, a member of the Chinese scholar-official class residing in north China under Mongol rule, is also actor-manager of his own troupe.

A popular dramatist, his friendships with actors probably contribute to his ability to portray common people—particularly women—with understanding and sympathy.

“The Injustice Done to Tou-Ohe,” about the sufferings of a widow who is executed for a crime she has not committed, is the most famous of his sixty-odd plays (fourteen of which survive).