Sanmenxia online Spring Festival gala kicks off

Children perform a dance wearing red clothes at the online Spring Festival gala in Sanmenxia on Feb 3. [Photo/ismx.cn]

An online Spring Festival gala was held on Feb 3 to welcome the Chinese New Year in Sanmenxia, Central China's Henan province.

The event was hosted by Sanmenxia Daily and co-organized by Sanmenxia Mass Art Center and Culture and the Tourism Bureau of Hubin district. This is the third time it has been held in the city.

The annual event began its program selection process on Nov 21, 2017, with a total of 11 programs making the final cut.

Adopting the slogan "setting sail in 2018", the 90-minute event included a variety of performances such as traditional Chinese opera, dances, short sketches, and musical performances.

A magic show is performed at the online Spring Festival gala. [Photo/ismx.cn]

Audiences were moved, and a little surprised, by one program which saw 10 sisters, all models ranging from 42 to 67 years old, showing off their vivacious spirit and unique beauty in a heartwarming expression of familial love.

Other highlights included the sketch titled "Awesome! My hometown Sanmenxia," which harkened back to two months earlier when Sanmenxia competed to make the list of the Top 10 most charming cities in China. When the final list appeared featuring Sanmenxia, the crowd erupted in applause.

Media representatives from Sanmenxia's sister cities as well as officials from local enterprises attended the ceremony and extended holidays wishes to all the attendees.

The gala has received scores of positive reviews from netizens since its broadcast.

"The performances are real and relatable, expressions of everyday life", one netizen said.

The sketch "Awesome! My hometown Sanmenxia" is a highlight of the show. [Photo/ismx.cn]