Wuzhen Theater Festival kicks off with variety of outdoor live performances

The 11th Wuzhen Theater Festival raised the curtain Thursday evening in the ancient water town of Wuzhen in Zhejiang Province, east China, bringing together theatrical artists of all ages and enthusiasts from home and abroad.

This year's festival, which runs until Oct. 27 under the theme of "solidarity," features 24 specially invited plays from 11 countries. Of these, 18 performances will compete in the emerging theater artists' competition segment, as well as teaching and reading sessions and outdoor carnivals.

One of the festival's major attractions is the ancient town carnival, which has been drawing crowds of audience members and visitors. Each street is adorned with different scenes, creating an immersive experience.

At Zhaoming Academy, two young theatrical artists performed a puppet show that captivated numerous tourists.

"The marionette seems to come to life through the background music reminiscent of Nanyin (ancient court music) and the performer's lines reflecting an expression of inner self," said Song Qingru, a theater enthusiast.

"It's a popular festival, accessible to everyone. We ordinary people can enjoy it. I love these dramas and come here to take photos and appreciate the performances," said Xu Jufen, a visitor.

The drama fair at this festival features a variety of elements, including music, movies, designer toys, exhibitions, and fairs. It gathers inheritors of intangible cultural heritage and drama performers from across China, merging traditional folk cultures with contemporary arts.

"We invited artists from Peking Opera and Qinqiang Opera (a Chinese folk opera genre originating in the Western Zhou Dynasty (1046 BC-771 BC) to perform in Wuzhen. Tourists can sit on benches to appreciate traditional Chinese dramas, allowing us to share and spread our cultural heritage," said Lu Yaping, one of the program heads for intangible cultural heritage.

Wuzhen Theater Festival kicks off with variety of outdoor live performances

The death toll from a landfill collapse in the central Philippine city of Cebu has risen to eight by Monday morning as search and rescue operations continued for another 28 missing people.

The landfill collapse occurred on Thursday as dozens of sanitation workers were working at the site. The disaster has already caused injuries of 18 people.

Family members of the missing people said the rescue progress is slow, and the hope for the survival of their loved ones is fading.

"For me, maybe I’ve accepted the worst result already because the garbage is poisonous and yesterday, it was raining very hard the whole day. Maybe they’ve been poisoned. For us, alive or dead, I hope we can get their bodies out of the garbage rubble," said Maria Kareen Rubin, a family member of a victim.

Families have set up camps on high ground near the landfill, awaiting news of their relatives. Some people at the site said cries for help could still be heard hours after the landfill collapsed, but these voices gradually faded away.

Bienvenido Ranido, who lost his wife in the disaster, said he can't believe all that happened.

"After they gave my wife oxygen, my kids and I were expecting that she would be saved that night because she was still alive. But the night came and till the next morning, they didn't manage to save her," he said.

Death toll in central Philippine landfill collapse rises to eight