Taking place in China between 1856 and 1860, The Second Opium War would witness the defeat of the Qing Dynasty by both the United Kingdom and French Empire. This would result in ‘commercial privileges and legal and territorial concessions in China. The conflicts marked the start of the era of unequal treaties and other inroads on Qing sovereignty that helped weaken and ultimately topple the dynasty in favour of republican China in the early 20th century’. Using this historical event to explore ‘misunderstanding and prejudice between China and the West’, playwright Chris Ruffle presents Before the Wall, which will be taking part in this year’s Edinburgh Festival Fringe. Directed by Mingyu Lin and produced by the Rimbaud Verlaine Foundation, we find out more about what to expect from the show!