“Tang [Xianzu] is well known in China, though even in his home country he does not enjoy anything like the literary status of his English counterpart – he wrote far fewer works (four plays, [including The Peony Pavilion,] compared with Shakespeare’s 37), and is not as quotable. But no matter. The timing was perfect. Tang died in 1616, the same year as Shashibiya, as Shakespeare is called in Chinese.”