[3] The Chinese language original is known for the beauty of its lyrical verse, and considered a Yuan masterpiece;[2][4] a series of translations and revisions inspired several popular modern plays.
A beautiful sixteen-year-old girl, Hai-tang (also transliterated Hai-t'ang, Hi-tang, or Chang-hi-tang), is sold into a house of prostitution by her impoverished family, after her father's death.
[1][5][6][7][8] The play became first known in the Western world in a French language translation by Stanislas Julien, published in London in 1832 as Le Cercle de Craie.
[2][3] Based on Klabund's play, the Austrian composer Alexander von Zemlinsky adapted a libretto for his Der Kreidekreis, performed in Zurich in 1933.
[11] The famous Kyrgyz author and novelist Chinghiz Aitmatov was also indirectly inspired from the Chalk Circle, while writing his 1960 book, The Red Scarf.