BEIJING, Aug. 24 (Xinhua) -- The eight-hour Russian play "And Quiet Flows the Don" hit the stage of Beijing Tianqiao Theater Thursday and will be performed until Saturday.

Based on the Nobel Prize winning novel of the same name by Mikhail Sholokhov, "And Quiet Flows the Don" depicts the indomitable will of the Cossacks in wars.

Directed by Grigory Kozlov, the four-act play premiered at the St. Pertersburg Masterskaya Theater in May 2013.

The play will also be staged at the Shanghai Culture Square from Aug. 30 to Sept. 1.