Silk Road Intl Art Festival to open in Xi'an soon

The 7th Silk Road International Arts Festival is scheduled to be held in Xi'an, capital of Northwest China's Shaanxi province, on Dec 2-6.

The event will be hosted by the Ministry of Culture and Tourism and the Shaanxi Provincial People's Government, and organized by the Shaanxi Provincial Department of Culture and Tourism.

A total of 22 plays, including 13 from abroad, will be shown at the festival both online and offline due to the Covid-19 pandemic. They include operas, acrobatics, dramas, and music performances.

Created by famous composer He Zhanhao, the symphonic Qinqiang suite Genjudi (根据地), which depicts the revolutionary course of the Shaanxi-Gansu revolutionary base in a panoramic style, will be shown at the opening ceremony of the festival.

In the exhibition section of the festival, seven exhibitions will serve as communication platforms for international artists and convey the spirit of the Silk Road, as well as promote Shaanxi cultural tourism attractions such as farmer paintings, Chang'an painting, and the world-famous Terracotta Warriors.

The Silk Road International Art Festival is the first domestic international art festival themed around the Silk Road approved by the Communist Party of China Central Committee and State Council.

It has been held six times since 2014, and has become an important platform for cultural exchanges between China and other countries, as well as an important starting point for Shaanxi to begin contributing to the Belt and Road Initiative.