The opera program of this year's CMG Spring Festival Gala will highlight a joyful and festive theme, featuring classic pieces from various genres.
Renowned artists and emerging talents will share the stage enhanced by advanced technologies like virtual effects and projections, showcasing the timeless vitality of opera art.
Peking Opera artist Meng Guanglu is set to take the Spring Festival Gala stage for the 25th time, celebrating New Year's Eve with the audience.
"Peking Opera culture is both an image and a source of strength. Therefore, our performances on stage must embody this spirit and energy, providing the audience with a form of spiritual nourishment," said Meng.
This year's Spring Festival Gala opera program will, for the first time, feature the joint performance of Kunqu melodies by Kunqu, Peking Opera, and Wu Opera to highlight Kunqu's status as the "ancestor of hundred operas."
In addition, young actors will debut Xiang Opera on the Spring Festival Gala, while renowned Yu Opera artists will present classic pieces. The entire program, performed as an opera medley, will offer audiences a grand feast of traditional theater.
"We selected opera pieces with auspicious meanings that embody the virtues of truth, kindness, and beauty. These include signature pieces expressing the joy of reunion after a long separation, acts of gratitude, the bold spirit of perseverance in old age, and the celebration of longevity and well-being. On the grand stage of the Spring Festival Gala, these performances aim to convey the wonderful qualities of traditional culture and heartfelt blessings to the audiences nationwide," said Deng Yun, who is in charge of the opera program of the Spring Festival Gala.
Opera program of Spring Festival Gala features classic pieces, showcasing enduring charm of opera art
The first phase of the 139th China Import and Export Fair, also known as the Canton Fair, closed on Sunday with a record number of overseas buyers, the organizer said.
As of 5 p.m. on Sunday, about 167,000 overseas buyers from 216 countries and regions had attended the offline exhibition, up 5.9 percent from the same period of the previous edition, according to the China Foreign Trade Center.
The turnout, the highest for any first phase of the fair, underscored the resilience and vitality of China's foreign trade, it said.
The first phase of the fair, themed "advancing manufacturing," featured more than 25,000 booths, 740,000 products and over 12,000 exhibitors.
AI smart appliances, drones, new energy vehicles, and precision CNC machine tools were all on display. Spanning intelligent manufacturing, new energy, and high-end equipment, the showcase highlights the innovation capacity and vitality of China's advanced industrial system.
A total of 324 new product launch events were held, providing companies with an effective platform for networking and collaboration.
"We want to expand our relationship, and also bring innovation from here to Germany much faster, or to do European market much faster," said Kevin Klingler, a German purchaser.
This year's fair is being held in three offline phases in Guangzhou, south China's Guangdong Province, and will run through May 5. The second phase, scheduled from April 23 to 27, will focus on "quality home life," including building materials, furniture, household products, gifts and decorations.
Established in 1957, the Canton Fair takes place twice a year in Guangzhou. It is the longest-running of several comprehensive international trade events in China, and it has been hailed as the barometer of China's foreign trade.
Int'l buyers hit record for 1st phase of China's Canton Fair
