An international version of "Deep in Memory," a dance drama that conveys the cruelty and pain brought by invading Japanese troops in the Nanjing Massacre, was staged in Beijing on Saturday night.

Dancers from China, the United States, Germany and Japan took part in the performance at the Beijing Tianqiao Performing Arts Center, marking the world premiere of the international version.

Directed by Tong Ruirui, the story follows survivors and witnesses of the Nanjing Massacre, which took place when invading Japanese troops captured Nanjing during World War II. Approximately 300,000 Chinese civilians and unarmed soldiers were killed in a six-week rampage that began on Dec. 13, 1937.

Chinese dancer Yang Zheng plays the lead role of Chinese-American writer Iris Chang, the author of "The Rape of Nanking: The Forgotten Holocaust of World War II," who, in the dance drama, establishes links with the main historical figures from the book, including John Rabe, Minnie Vautrin, Li Xiuying and Shiro Azuma.

The international version was created this year to commemorate the 80th anniversary of victory in the Chinese People's War of Resistance against Japanese Aggression and the World Anti-Fascist War. It will also be staged in France in November.

Inspired by Iris Chang's "power of one" philosophy, Tong holds firm belief in the power of dance.

"I believe that the power of a dance drama can bring more people into this period of history. If audiences go on to read Iris Chang's book to learn about the history and the historical figures after watching it, then our work has made all the difference," she said.

Pierre Theron, a viewer from France who got to learn about the Nanjing Massacre for the first time when watching the dance drama, said that he was emotionally touched, adding that the dance drama can tell the period of history in a way that the global audience can understand.