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Let's Meet in Beijing

Beijing, an ancient city undergoing one of the world’s most rapid and astonishing transformations to modernity, is becoming one of the world's "centre stages" for international politics, economic affairs and cultures. The "Meet in Beijing" Arts Festival, staged in the heart of the Chinese nation, is thus a catalyst for dialogues between the past and the future, the East and the West, and the interaction among different cultures. The Eighth 2008 Meet in Beijing will be the largest and will run the longest to celebrate the upcoming Beijing Olympic Games.

From May to September, nearly 10,000 artists from some 80 countries and areas will gather in Beijing to present more than 100 performances in various art forms, such as modern dances, opera and symphony during this eighth instalment of this event that began in 2000.

The Meet in Beijing Arts Festival is a large-scale international festival hosted annually by China’s Ministry of Culture, the Beijing Municipal Government and the State Administration of Radio, Film and Television.

In May 2000, the Meet in Beijing Arts Festival made its debut and attracted 38 groups of artists from 24 countries around the world. These artists offered Beijing audiences, as well as other parts of China, 109 stage performances, six outdoor shows and six art exhibitions.

With the principle of spreading Chinese traditional culture, introducing the essence of overseas arts as well as promoting cultural exchanges between China and the other parts of the world, Meet in Beijing has established itself as a national-level artistic activity in China and Asia, becoming another of Beijing’s cultural highlights.

The event’s performances and exhibitions make up the largest such annual international cultural event in the Chinese capital. Each year, it has attracted more than 100 artistic groups, individuals and exhibitions from around the globe. It provides new insights to foreign talents for Chinese audiences steeped in local culture.

The festival promotes exchanges between China and the rest of the world, a fusion of Chinese traditional culture and the essence of foreign arts. Operated both by the local government and companies, performances are held indoors and outdoors. Since its inception, the festival has won praise from home and abroad for its distinctive themes and rich content. It is simply an invitation to artists all over the world to come to the Chinese capital for a feast of multi-culture, a symphony of love and peace, and a display of beauty.

This year's Meet in Beijing Arts Festival will be a continuation of a themed programme of performances and cultural exhibitions, with the theme of “Five Rings of Art Blooming in Beijing.” Famous Irish dancing, Riverdance and Chinese musician Tan Dun's opera Tea are some of the events scheduled. It is estimated that more than two millions people will view these performances.

Ticket packages have been designed to ensure that everyone can afford them. There will also be a family package, which will enable up to five members in one family to watch the performances they are interested in, with a total package price that is lower than buying single tickets. The organizer hopes to encourage all people, whether young or old, to participate in the events.

In addition, the organizer will provide ticket packages to Olympic volunteers and athletes competing for medals in Beijing. They can enjoy performances from both home and abroad at discounted prices.

Riverdance by the Riverdance Irish Dance Troupe

Of all the performances to emerge from Ireland in the past decade—in rock, music, theatre or film—nothing has the energy, sensuality or spectacular nature of Riverdance, known as a masterpiece of Irish tap dance.

With its fusion of Irish and International music and dance, the show broke all box office records during its world premiere run in Dublin in early 1995. When the show transferred to London in June of that year, the reaction was unprecedented, with the original 10 performances being increased to 151 over subsequent months. Then followed a hugely successful tour to New York, Belfast and Cork. Since then, it has packed theatres throughout North America, Oceania, Asia and Europe.

There are three Riverdance productions, one touring the United States and Canada (the Boyne), one touring Europe (the Avoca) and one playing Dublin, Ireland each summer (the Foyle). With music and lyrics by Bill Whelan, produced by Moya Doherty and directed by John McColgan, Riverdance is the development of an original idea by Moya Doherty, which was initially performed at the Eurovision Song Contest held in Dublin in April 1994 as a seven-minute interval act. It is an innovative and exciting blend of dance, music and song. Drawing on Irish traditions, the combined talents of the performers propel Irish dancing and music into the present day, capturing the imagination of audiences across all ages and cultures.

Each of the companies consists of up to 80 cast and crew members, with the remarkable Riverdance Irish Dance Troupe, the cream of Irish musicians in the Riverdance Band and a spectacular array of talent from Spain, Russia and America, performing to the magic of Bill Whelan's music. The wave of public enthusiasm is not only reflected in show attendances but also by massive commercial success, as demonstrated in phenomenal sales of their DVDs, videos and CDs.

Many of the members of the Riverdance Irish Dance Troupe are world-class Irish dancers. They hail mostly from Ireland, but also from Britain, the United States, Canada and Australia. Between them the dancers can boast of literally hundreds of championships won in Ireland and abroad. Most started dancing at 3 or 4 years of age at local dance schools and progressed to world championship level before being chosen to perform in Riverdance.

Tea: A Mirror of Soul

Tea tells a sad love story full of Chinese characteristics. In Tang Dynasty, Seikyo, the prince of Japan fell in love with Beautiful Lan (the Princess of Tang Dynasty) when he was engaged in learning the tea ceremony in China. The emperor (Lan’s father) asked Seikyo to recite a couple of tea poems when Seikyo expressed his wish to marry Lan. Seikyo’s excellence at reciting poetry led the emperor to give his consent to the marriage, which angered the Chinese prince (Lan’s brother).

During a tea ceremony, a Persian prince was offering a thousand horses in exchange for The Book of Tea written by tea sage Lu Yu. Seikyo pointed out that the book shown by the Chinese prince was fraudulent, for he had seen the real one from tea sage Lu Yu. Seikyo and the Chinese Prince bet their lives.

When Seikyo and Lan arrived at Lu Yu’s home. Lu, the daughter of Luyu announced the death of her father and agreed to give the real book to them on condition that they vowed to spread its wisdom around the world. Just on the moment the Chinese prince bursts in and grabs the book from them. In the fight Lan is mortally wounded. The prince is so sad that he asks Seikyo to kill him. However, Seikyo slices off his own hair with a sword, deciding to become a monk devoted to the dissemination of the tea ceremony in Japan.

Hairspray

Hairspray is a musical with music by Marc Shaiman, lyrics by Scott Wittman and Shaiman and a script by Mark O'Donnell and Thomas Meehan, based on the 1988 John Waters movie Hairspray. The songs include 1960s-style dance music and "downtown" rhythm and blues.

In 1962 Baltimore, Maryland, plump teenager Tracy Turnblad's dream is to dance on The Corny Collins Show, a local TV dance programme based on the real-life Buddy Deane Show. When Tracy wins a role on the show, she becomes a celebrity overnight. She then launches a campaign to racially integrate the show. Hairspray is a social commentary on the injustices of parts of American society in the 1960s.

The musical's original Broadway production opened in 2002 and won 8 Tony Awards out of 13 nominations. As of April 2008, it has played in more than 2,300 performances. Hairspray has also enjoyed US national tours and numerous foreign productions and was adapted for a 2007 musical film. The London West End production was nominated for a record-setting 11 Laurence Olivier Awards, winning for Best New Musical and in three other categories.