SMG Performing Arts Group (SMG Live) is a subsidiary business group of SMG. It is an industry leader which links business services such as performing arts, theatre management, artist management, arts education, marketing, and investment. SMG Live has presented over 10,000 performances annually over the past six years. In 2012, it was named as a national advanced unit in cultural system reform. In 2013, it was named as one of the 30 best national cultural enterprises. In 2014, it became one of the three best-performing companies in China.
SMG Live owns or manages 17 professional theatres with a combined total of 12,300 seats between them - 45% of the overall seating capacity in center Shanghai’s theatre Market. Its portfolio of theatres it owns includes Shanghai Majestic Theatre, Shanghai International Dance Center, Shanghai Lyceum Theatre, Shanghai Art Theatre, Shanghai People’s Grand Theatre, and ET Space.
SMG Live also owns 7 professional theatre companies including Shanghai Acrobatic Troupe, Shanghai Dance Theatre and Shanghai Dramatic Arts Center. It has produced over 300 live stage works including many award-winning pieces like the poetic drama Red Clouds In the Horizon and dance theatre Crested Ibis. SMG Live is also one of the leading companies in commercial theater products like musicals and long-running shows. It has successfully produced Chinese versions of the musical Mamma Mia! and Cats; ERA---Time Travel, a multimedia acrobatic fantasy; and immersive theater production Sleep No More, Shanghai. SMG Live’s work also encompasses professional performing arts training centers, performing arts brokerage services, theatrical design centers, and ticketing services.