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Meet in Beijing Arts Festival
The warm spring breeze is blowing in, and art lovers in Beijing are expecting a colorful season to follow as the 18th Meet in Beijing Arts Festival will begin on April 27.
A symphony concert led by celebrated Chinese conductor Tan Lihua and his Italian counterpart Andrea Molino at the National Center for Performing Arts will open the festival - a month-long cultural event running through May 31.
As Asia's biggest international spring arts festival, Meet in Beijing will convene nearly 800 Chinese and foreign artists from 19 countries and regions in the capital this year. They will bring 130 performances, three art exhibitions and a number of public art education activities in the city's major theaters and art centers.
From music and art exhibitions to plays, dance shows and gourmet festivals, Meet in Beijing will have both classical and contemporary cultural elements on offer.
The dance drama Confucius will be performed during the Meet in Beijing Arts Festival on May 31.
Featured Country: Italy
Italy, as the featured country for this year, will present a wide variety of shows and cultural activities in the capital.
The opening symphony concert on April 27 is expected to enchant audiences with classics from both Italian operas and famous Chinese songs.
Three grand exhibitions will help narrate Italy's culture and art development from different aspects. They are Art, Culture and Daily Life in Renaissance Italy held at the Capital Museum, The Italian Keyboard: from Cristofori to Modern Times in the China Millennium Monument, and Double Screen: A Survey of Artists' Film and Video in Italy at the museum of the China Academy of Fine Arts. The first exhibit features more than 100 pieces of treasured artworks from over 10 major institutions in Italy, tracing the artistic glory and rich cultural life of the Renaissance period.
Another highlight from the Italian side will be a gourmet feast running from May 14 to 27 at the Minzu Hotel.
"Food is an indispensable part of art and life. So this time, we also brought a two-week Italian food festival," said Franco Amadei, cultural counselor of the Italian Embassy in China, at Tuesday's news conference. Two Italian chefs, including Michelin-starred chef Luca Marchini, will bring authentic Italian dishes to sate the appetite of foodies in Beijing, Amadei said.
The Belt and Road: art without borders
Since 2018 marks the fifth anniversary of the Belt and Road Initiative proposed by President Xi Jinping, this year's Meet in Beijing is aimed at further promoting cultural exchanges between countries involved in the Belt and Road Initiative.
In addition to a number of Italian arts, many other foreign shows will also grace stages in Beijing's major theaters, such as Polish mime Seriously Funny, French circus Opus 7, The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-time by the UK's National Theatre and puppet show János Háry Puppet Play by Budapest Puppet Theatre.
As part of the Chinese shows, the dance drama Confucius will close the festival May 31. Confucius is an ancient Chinese philosopher who founded Confucianism more than 2,000 years ago, a philosophy with far-reaching influence on Chinese people. The 90-minute dance show will tell the story of the legendary scholar's journey through the kingdoms of the various Zhou dynasties (BC 1046-256) and his quest to instill codes of ethics, honor and benevolence among the empire's rulers.
From May 4 to 5, the classical folk dance show Silk Road, hailed by many as "Swan Lake of the East", will be staged anew after a tour of more than 2,800 performances over the past 38 years.
The UK's National Theatre will stage the drama The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-time at the Tianqiao Performing Arts Center from May 24 to 27.
Promoting art among the public
Appreciating art at theaters may be considered a luxury due to the sometimes costly tickets.
To benefit a larger number of people, Meet in Beijing organizers said they've taken a series of measures such as lower prices, free outdoor performances, workshops, seminars and art activities at schools and universities.
"Benefiting the general public has been an eternal theme for Meet in Beijing. With funding from the government, we provide a lot of high-quality shows with low prices at Beijing's mainstream theaters," said Wang Xiuqin, general manager of China Arts and Entertainment Group, one of the organizers of the festival.
According to organizers, people will also have opportunities to talk face-to-face with famous artists and scholars from both China and abroad, including drama talks in the Ju Yin Theater with artists from Beijing People's Art Theater and National Theater of Northern Greece, a musical workshop with the US' Philadelphia All-State Wind Ensemble in OWSpace bookstore, and a public benefit talk on Chinese and Italian jazz.
What also highlights the public benefit activities is a special performance of János Háry Puppet Play for children with autism and cerebral palsy at the Beijing Tianqiao Performing Arts Center on May 1. The performance was produced in cooperation with the World of Art Brut Culture to enrich the artistic lives of autistic children.
Poland's Fair Play crew will perform mime Seriously Funny at Tsinghua University on May 12.
Meet in Beijing is an annual arts festival sponsored by the Ministry of Culture and Tourism, State Administration of Radio and Television and the Beijing municipal government, and organized by China Arts and Entertainment Group and Beijing Municipal Bureau of Culture. Over its 18-year existence, the festival has invited more than 32,000 artists from across the world, attracting more than 4.2 million audience members to the capital.
(CHINA DAILY)
