Performances and events set to celebrate Spring Festival

Marking the Year of the Dragon, nearly 40 performances and events will be staged at eight theaters in Beijing, Tianjin and Hebei province, during the upcoming Spring Festival.

Traditional Chinese operas, such as Peking Opera, Pingju Opera, and pi ying, or shadow puppets, will be highlighted, featuring artists from art troupes from Beijing, Tianjin and Hebei.

From Feb 2 to 29, 10 shows, including classical music recitals, xiangsheng or crosstalk, acrobatics and folk music from Inner Mongolia autonomous region, will be performed at the Forbidden City Concert Hall in Beijing, with soloists, such as violinist Chen Xi, cellist Mo Mo and harpist Sun Shimeng, joining the shows.

The Jingju Theater Company of Beijing will give a show on the first day of Lunar New Year, Feb 10, with star performers performing classic Peking Opera pieces. Jingju, also known as Peking Opera, has a history of more than 200 years and was recognized as an Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity by UNESCO in 2010. It brings together art forms such as singing, dancing, martial arts and acrobatics. It has been 15 years that the company brings shows to audiences in Beijing on the first day of Lunar New Year.

On Feb 16, Beijing Chinese Orchestra will stage traditional Chinese music pieces which are popular among the audiences, such as Hundreds of Birds Paying Homage to Phoenix, and Bu Bu Gao, a classic Chinese music piece known for its dancing and energetic melody often played during Spring Festival.

A weeklong ballet event will be held in Beijing from Feb 11 to 16, featuring shows from Russian State Classical Ballet, such as Swan Lake and The Nutcracker.