A galloping horses-themed dance performance at the phenomenal annual TV Spring Festival Gala in China on Monday visually enchanted hundreds of millions of viewers, bringing to life the traditional Chinese spirit of horses, thanks to its innovative choreography, which features a dancer flying in the air with highly skilled manned wire technique and spectacular stage group dancing.
The dance performance was led by a dancer dressed as a horse, while others danced with powerful movements amid drumbeats, presenting the horses' perseverance and free spirit, which channel raw power into an enduring spirit of progress. The dance echoed the Gala’s theme of "Galloping Steed, Onward Unstoppable" with elegance, strength, and vitality.
"This is an original dance from our CMG Spring Festival Gala. The inspiration for this dance actually comes from the imagery of fine horses that have existed in our Chinese culture for thousands of years. Using the concept of chasing the wind and shadows, we express our intrinsic Chinese spirit in the grand style of a male ensemble dance," said Wang Zhenbing, dance director of the 2026 Spring Festival Gala.
"We aimed to make the horse appear more vivid and powerful, capturing its feeling of chasing the wind and racing toward the sun. That’s why we chose to use a flying wire technique, which is the highlight of our performance. We tried to make the flying wire as inconspicuous as possible, adjusting it to the finest state while ensuring safety,” said Geng Zibo, dance choreographer of the 2026 Spring Festival Gala.
With the support of the flying wire, leading male dancer Zhang Han transformed into a nimble white horse, with his movements sometimes as light as the wind and at other times bursting with explosive energy. Each perfect leap relies on the meticulous coordination and precise calibration among the performer, the wire operators, and other dancers.
"The biggest challenge with the flying wire is that we don’t use machines; we rely on skilled operators who must always coordinate closely. They need to adjust to any sudden changes in force or speed on-site,” said Geng.
"The biggest difficulty lies in the coordination between the wire operators, the other dancers, and me. For example, when I'm jumping, the operators need to know exactly when to pull, when the others need to catch me, and how to move me to the next position. This requires repeated practice and coordination,” said Zhang Han.
The Spring Festival, or the Chinese New Year, is the most important traditional holiday for the Chinese people, and watching the Spring Festival Gala, also known as "Chunwan," is a cherished part of the celebrations every year in hundreds of millions of Chinese homes.
Since first being broadcast in 1983, the Gala has been recognized by Guinness World Records as the most-watched annual television program on the planet.
The Spring Festival itself was inscribed on UNESCO's Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity in December 2024.
The 2026 Spring Festival falls on Tuesday this year, ushering in the Year of the Horse.
Chinese Spring Festival Gala’s galloping-horse-themed dance features dancer flying in innovative choreography
China is seeing a surge in movie-related consumption during this year's Spring Festival holiday, also the most lucrative box office window in the country's film market, that began on Feb 15.
In recent years, China has rolled out policies to support the film industry's integration with tourism, dining, retail and many other areas of consumption, aiming to turn the popularity of films into a sustainable, multifaceted economic driver. And the efforts are paying off, with the gradual transformation of the movie industry from a purely box-office-driven model to a "film-plus" consumption ecosystem.
Across the country this holiday season, cinemas are packed with viewers, stores are experiencing booming licensed product sales, film parks are receiving increased numbers of visitors, and iconic movie shooting locations are drawing an influx of tourists.
On Tuesday, the first day of the Chinese New Year of the Horse, the country's film industry released six movies, including the espionage thriller "Scare Out", the racing sequel "Pegasus 3", the epic martial arts film "Blades of the Guardians", the animated adventure "Panda Plan: The Magical Tribe", the family-friendly "Boonie Bears: Every Year with a Bear", and the fantasy adventure "Per Aspera Ad Astra."
Moviegoers have access to a rich variety of formats, including CINITY and IMAX, with all six titles offering the cutting-edge CINITY versions.
"Watching movies during the Spring Festival holiday has become a new custom for us young people. And this holiday, I'm interested in a lot of films," said Xie Fan, a moviegoer in Yiyang City of central China's Hunan Province.
This year, Chinese local authorities are allocating 2.05 billion yuan (over 295 million U.S. dollars) in funds to directly benefit the public through the distribution of consumption vouchers, subsidies, and cash envelopes during the Spring Festival holiday.
At a shopping mall in Hunan, customers with their movie ticket stubs can enjoy special deals for dining, shopping, entertainment, and other consumption experiences, as local shopping malls feel more incentivized to roll out preferential measures during the holiday.
"During the Spring Festival holiday, our entire shopping mall are handing out over 5,000 gifts to draw more people to our cinemas and stores and help further stimulate the consumption market," said Xue Xuan, marketing manager at a local shopping mall in Hunan.
Film parks in major Chinese cities are also organizing parades featuring popular film characters, flash mob concerts, creative cultural shows, distinctive Spring Festival fairs, and many other film-related activities to attract visitors of all ages.
"We are integrating diverse commercial activities and initiatives that benefit the people to build a full-scene cultural and tourism consumption format that promises citizens and tourists new experiences during the Spring Festival holiday," said Zhang Xiangdong, who heads the Planning Department of the Shaanxi Xiying Cultural Tourism Development Co., Ltd.
Retail sales of IP-licensed consumer merchandise stand as another major focus of the efforts to build a "film-plus" consumption ecosystem. This holiday has seen the launch of more toys, apparel, collectibles, and other branded items based on well-known film characters.
"The Spring Festival holiday season is the most lucrative box office window with surging numbers of moviegoers and a very diverse customer base. During this time, we usually launch a large number of IP-licensed products. This year, merchandise themed around 'Boonie Bears' are particularly popular with the youngsters," said Li Jinlei, business manager for film derivatives at the Wanda Cinema Line Corp, referring to the popular animation franchise.
China's official Spring Festival holiday lasts nine days till Feb 23 this year.
Spring Festival holiday sees surge in film-related consumer spending
