Festival of China in Washington, D.C.
October 1 is China's National Day; this year it is also the date on which a large-scale festival of China will be launched in Washington, D.C. Co-sponsored by the John Fitzgerald Kennedy Center for Performing Arts and the China's Ministry of Cultural Affairs, the Festival of China will run in Washington, D.C. from October 1 to October 30. During the period, over 600 top-notch Chinese artists from Beijing, Shanghai and Hong Kong will put their talents on display in what is described as the largest show of its kind outside China.
Featured at the festival will be a wide range of art forms, including sculpture, photography, architecture, opera, orchestra concerts, dance, folk music, handicrafts, acrobatics, and - from the country where gun powder was invented - fireworks. Players from the famed Beijing People's Art Theater will stage what has done much to make their reputation, Tea House by Lao She, a play that vividly depict the changing life in Beijing in the first half of the 20th century. Three terra-cotta warriors from the First Qin Emperor's Mausoleum outside Xian will also be exhibited as part of the festival. In Peking opera the show that will be staged is the classic Female Generals of the Yang Family, which is based on tales about women in a prominent family of the Song Dynasty who, after the deaths of their menfolk, volunteer to serve country in their place. The show is Peking opera at its best, with a skillful combination of singing, dancing and martial arts.
With all these rich offerings, the upcoming Festival of China should be a wonderful opportunity, for both those who have traveled in China and those who have yet to do so, to appreciate Chinese culture and art in great variety.
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