The opera, created by the island's Guoguang Opera Company, comprises five acts. It caused a sensation when it premiered in Taipei in 2006.

    The opera employs stage partition to create changes of space and time and makes full use of film montage to present Chang's visual imagination and compact plot.

    The NCPA is seeing a steady flow of Taiwan artistic groups coming to onto stages.

    The Peking opera troupe is to be followed by Taiwan's internationally acclaimed Cloud Gate Dance Theater. It will put dance "Cursive" on the stage of the NCPA on Nov. 27. The work absorbed elements of calligraphy and was staged with sli...]]> Culture Sat, 07 Nov 2009 07:05:41 +0800 /articles/09/1107/196485/MTk2NDg1MYEOocHv.html     BEIJING, Nov. 6 (Xinhua) -- China is planning to build a library honoring the country's "father of space technology" Qian Xuesen, who died on Oct. 31 at the age of 98.

    The library, which will be built at Shanghai Jiao Tong University, where Qian once pursued his study, occupies an area of 7,000 square meters and is expected to have the most comprehensive collection of his works, according to the Publicity Department of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee Friday.

    The library, when completed, will serve as a base of patriotism education, the department said.

    To build the library is an important decision made by the CPC Central Committee to honor Qian's outstanding contributions and inspire people's awareness of hard work and pursuit of knowledge and creativity, the department said.

    The library will featu...]]> Culture Sat, 07 Nov 2009 02:06:56 +0800 /articles/09/1107/196484/MTk2NDg0e1k1HPop.html     BEIJING, Nov. 6 (Xinhua) -- Hong Kong is the first choice of many Chinese mainland residents when they travel abroad, according to the Beijing office of Hong Kong Tourism Board (HKTB) Friday, quoting survey results.

    More than 90 percent of over 8,000 netizens on the Chinese mainland surveyed said Hong Kong is the very place they hope to visit most, said HKTB.

    The survey, conducted by cyol.net which is affiliated to China Youth Daily, showed that sightseeing and shopping in Hong Kong are the top choices of Chinese mainland residents. Many respondents said they were impressed by Hong Kong as a "shopping paradise".

    The survey shows that those who have been to Hong Kong stayed there for 5.75 days each time, compared to the maximum seven-day stay for mainland residents permitted the Government of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region.

 ...]]> Culture Sat, 07 Nov 2009 02:06:50 +0800 /articles/09/1106/196457/MTk2NDU3Vuw1uv7s.html China officials yesterday renewed objection to an auction of looted Chinese relics, following a flood of criticism from netizens over Wednesday's auction of an imperial jade seal in London.

Officials from the State Administration of Cultural Heritage yesterday said the government would spend more manpower and money to collect, clean up and study China's lost relics, and would resort to various measures to get the lost relics back.

An imperial jade seal, owned by the Qing Dynasty Emperor Qianlong, who ruled China from 1736 to 1795, fetched 3.6 million pounds ($5.9 million), six times its top estimate.

A total of 153 pieces of Chinese artwork, including the seal, were sold for more than 8 million pounds by London-based auctioneer Sotheby's on Wednesday.

"Sotheby's is not aware of any issue of legal title or provenance concerning the Imperial Jade Seal in Sotheby's London Fine Chinese Ceramics and Works of Art Sa...]]> Culture Fri, 06 Nov 2009 13:19:27 +0800 /articles/09/1106/196418/MTk2NDE4uOmnDAX0.html     BEIJING, Nov. 6 (Xinhua) -- China officials Thursday renewed objection to an auction of looted Chinese relics, following a flood of criticism from netizens over Wednesday's auction of an imperial jade seal in London, China Daily reported Friday.

    Officials from the State Administration of Cultural Heritage said Thursday the government would spend more manpower and money to collect, clean up and study China's lost relics, and would resort to various measures to get the lost relics back.

    An imperial jade seal, owned by the Qing Dynasty Emperor Qianlong, who ruled China from 1736 to 1795, fetched 3.6 million pounds ($5.9 million), six times its top estimate.

    A total of 153 pieces of Chinese artwork, including the seal, were sold for more than 8 million pounds by London-based auctioneer Sotheby's on Wednesday.

    "Sotheby's is not...]]> Culture Fri, 06 Nov 2009 07:07:57 +0800 /articles/09/1106/196417/MTk2NDE3Ke7p69l4.html     by Jing Zhao Cesarone

    CHICAGO, Nov. 5 (Xinhua) -- No lines, no patterns, no drawings ... simply a piece of bright red paper, a pair of scissors and deft hands were all Wang Li, a well-known Chinese paper-cutting artist, needed to make magic unfold in front of a group of American students at LaSalle Language Academy in Chicago on Tuesday.

    Moments later, after Li had skillfully zigzagged through the square of folded paper, an exquisite paper-cut emerged: a dragon]]> Culture Fri, 06 Nov 2009 07:07:52 +0800 /articles/09/1105/196321/MTk2MzIx3ub7G25u.html Zhang Xiaogang's Solo Exhibition, "The Records", is on display at Pace Beijing in the 798 Art District.

The title comes from the well-known Han Dynasty text, Records of the Great Historian. The show displays Zhang's new works of art from 2008 to 2009, which includes prints on steel plates, sculptures and installations.

Zhang Xiaogang is one of China's leading artists. His artistic development parallels that of contemporary art in China. "The Records" includes a continuation of his Green Wall series paintings along with a group of new sculptures. He uses seemingly subtle objects to continue his sensitive depiction of memory: from the beginning bloodlines, light spots and trail of tears to the later faraway skylines and overhead electrical wires that appeared to travel freely across the canvas planes. He also utilizes objects which people would usually turn a blind eye to, such as lamp cords and electrical cables. Zhang makes conn...]]> Culture Thu, 05 Nov 2009 08:29:05 +0800     PARIS, Nov. 4 (Xinhua) -- The head of the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) was enchanted by former Chinese Vice Premier Li Lanqing's seal-cutting exhibition on Wednesday.

    UNESCO Director-General Koichiro Matsuura made this comment while he was paying a visit to the exhibition at the Chinese Culture Center in Paris.

    Roaming the aisle where seal-cutting works and introduction pictures were displayed, Matsuura frequently stopped to pore over every Chinese character that looked familiar to him. He also discussed the similarity between Chinese and Japanese writings with his companions.

    After leaving a note in Japanese which called the exhibit "magnificent," Matsuura told Xinhua that the display was very impressive.

    He added that it was "incredible" for Li to have made such great and nume...]]> Culture Thu, 05 Nov 2009 07:09:27 +0800 /articles/09/1104/196184/MTk2MTg097iPN5rK.html     BEIJING, Nov. 4 -- In a rare turf war between regulatory agencies, the Ministry of Culture (MOC) yesterday opened fire on the General Administration of Press and Publications (GAPP), saying its decision to pull the plug on a popular online game was "an act out of bounds".

    The firefight broke out after GAPP decided Monday night to suspend its approval of the World of WarCraft online game. The game has more than 1 million players on the Chinese mainland.

    In effect, the GAPP decision ran against a State Council circular issued last July that declared the MOC was in charge of regulating the multi-billion dollar online gaming industry.

    GAPP had previously overseen the industry.

    It has ordered NetEase.com, China's second-largest Internet games operator and the company with the license to run World of WarCraft in China,...]]> Culture Wed, 04 Nov 2009 07:07:07 +0800 /articles/09/1104/196183/MTk2MTgz181WVi1D.html     BEIJING, Nov. 4 -- Traditional Chinese culture features prominently in the NE Tiger's Haute Couture collection, one of the opening shows of the Beijing Fashion Week.

    The butterfly and the fan. These elements are the inspiration for NE Tiger's Haute Couture collection.

    For Chinese, the butterfly symbolizes freedom, romance and eternal of life, while the fan, indicates elegance and artistry. The two are featured in the contours or details of the dresses, suits and gowns.

    Braided embroidery makes the patterns stand out. The whole collection exudes a feel of both ancient and modern.

    Su Mang, editor-in-chief of Bazaar Magazine, said, "The use of splendid Chinese elements in this collection is very chic, which make them acceptable to fashionable young people."

    Haute Couture is just getting ...]]> Culture Wed, 04 Nov 2009 07:07:02 +0800     BEIJING, Nov. 4 -- While it is no surprise that many Beijingers have taken to coffee since foreign companies arrived on the scene nearly 10 years ago, customers are hanging out at cafes not for the coffee - but the environment.

    Ren Yue, 31, is the face of the Chinese coffee drinking generation. As a successful banking consultant, drinking a cup of Joe became part of her daily routine more than six years ago. Her doctor even recommended she started drinking coffee to aid digestion.

    While she is a coffee lover, most of her friends are not - but that has not stopped them from being part of Beijing's emerging cafe culture.

    A decade ago, Starbucks opened its first store on the Chinese mainland, looking to shake up the long-standing tea drinking culture with a jolt of caffeine. A few years later, Yue had her first sip of coffee and she was soon ho...]]> Culture Wed, 04 Nov 2009 02:11:24 +0800 /articles/09/1104/196140/MTk2MTQwF1lwHtda.html     BEIJING, Nov. 4 -- Walking along the streets in Harbin, the capital of northeast China's Heilongjiang Province, you see a large amount of well-preserved European-style architecture, among which is a site with a distinctive Star of David on a giant dome. This is the New Jewish Synagogue, which not only provides a narration of the Jewish religion in the city but also a home to an extensive collection of Jewish culture and artifacts.

    Tracing back to the late 19th and early 20th century, the Jewish community in Harbin was one of the strongest and most viable in the city. According to Li Shuxiao, deputy director of the Harbin Jewish Research Center with the Heilongjiang Academy of Social Sciences, between 1899, when the first Russian Jewish immigrants came to Harbin and 1985, when the last Jewish settler in Harbin passed away, altogether more than 20,000 Jewish people spent their lives at one time or an...]]> Culture Wed, 04 Nov 2009 02:10:56 +0800     BEIJING, Nov. 2 (Xinhua) -- Worldwide knowledge of China's culture has advanced again with the help of two recent events involving famous ancient Chinese historical figures.

    The U.S. House of Representatives adopted a resolution last week to honor the 2,560th anniversary of the birth of Confucius, recognizing the ancient Chinese thinkers's "invaluable contributions to philosophy and social and political thought."

    On raising the bill, Al Green, a Democratic Congressman from Texas, said Confucianism has deeply influenced and continues to have far-reaching influence on the social and political thought of many countries around the world.

    Li Chengjiu, a senior researcher at the Brookings Institution's John L. Thornton China Center, said the U.S. House's Confucius resolution reflected China's increasing influence and the U.S. political community's rising re...]]> Culture Tue, 03 Nov 2009 02:05:09 +0800 /articles/09/1102/195937/MTk1OTM3UOxj4FTd.html     BEIJING, Nov. 2 -- The Huayuankou Industrial Park in Dalian is poised to become a national-level new materials industrial center, following an announcement that it has secured 20 projects of new materials. These recently agreed initiatives are set to trigger substantial growth in Dalian, the second largest city in Liaoning.

    From January to September this year, foreign capital in the region grew by 22 fold, domestic investment increased by 16 times and budgetary fiscal revenue was eight times that of the same period last year.

    Dong Chengfa, director of the management committee of the Huayuankou Industrial Park, said the combined investment in the 20 projects was in excess of 30 billion yuan (around 4.2 billion U.S. dollars), accounting for some 75 percent of the total investment in the region.

    Dalian was recognized as one of the first sev...]]> Culture Mon, 02 Nov 2009 07:09:29 +0800 /articles/09/1102/195936/MTk1OTM2SFJMLZuS.html [1] [2] [3] [4] [5] [6]

Visiting Chinese Vice Premier Li Keqiang speaks during the inauguration of Confucius Institute of University of Canterbury in Christchurch, New Zealand, Nov. 1, 2009.(Xinhua/Liu Jiansheng)

Before the new Confucius Institute was opened Sunday, China had set up the first institute in New Zealand in 2007 in Oakland, the country's largest city.

New Zealand now hosts nearly 35,000 Chinese students, more than from any other country.

Li arrived in Christchurch, the largest city of New Zealand's South Island, earlier Sunday, starting a three-day official visit to the Pacific island nation.

China and New Zealand have enjoyed rapid development in bilateral relations in the past few years. The two countries have econom...]]> Culture Mon, 02 Nov 2009 03:14:03 +0800 /articles/09/1102/195888/MTk1ODg4148xqydc.html     BEIJING, Nov. 1 (Xinhua) -- A prestigious but short-lived academy devoted to the study of Chinese culture in the late 1920s reopened Sunday in Beijing.

    The former Tsinghua Academy of Chinese Learning, Tsinghua University, one of China's top-tier universities, was established in 1925 and closed in 1929. Among the 70 students graduated from the academy, 50 became renowned scholars of Chinese culture, especially in literature.

    Its instructors included Wang Guowei, Liang Qichao and Chen Yinque, all legendary figures in the history of Chinese literature and household names even in today's China.

    By reopening the academy, we wish to inherit the heritage of the old Tsinghua Academy of Chinese Learning and promote the study of Chinese culture, said Xie Weihe, vice president of Tsinghua University.

    The academy aims to become an inf...]]> Culture Sun, 01 Nov 2009 21:06:25 +0800 /articles/09/1101/195820/MTk1ODIwHkDoWvnB.html Muslims gather in front of a mosque before going to an airport to leave for Mecca in Yinchuan, capital of northwest China's Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region, Oct. 31, 2009. A group of 297 Muslims took off from Yinchuan by chartered flight to Mecca for hajj Saturday. From Oct. 30 to Nov. 18, about 12,700 Muslims will go to the holy city for hajj in 41 chartered flights from Xinjiang, Gansu, Ningxia, Yunnan and Beijing. The number of pilgrims is 700 more than that of last year. (Xinhua/Liu Quanlong) Photo Gallery>>>

    YINCHUAN, Oct. 31 (Xinhua) -- The first chartered flight from northwest China's Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region to Mecca took off on Saturday afternoon, marking a start of pilgrims' annual journey from China's largest Hui community this year.

    A total of 2,250 people from Ningxia were scheduled to go for the hajj this year. They will go to Mecca by seven chartered p...]]> Culture Sat, 31 Oct 2009 21:05:27 +0800 /articles/09/1031/195757/MTk1NzU3F0731srT.html [1] [2] [3] [4] [5] [6] [7] [8]

    BEIJING, Oct. 30 (Xinhua) -- Christine was strolling down a narrow street in Beijing's 798 Art Zone when she came across a store with a round lantern hung high above its door. Painted on the lantern were the image of a panda and red-inked words in Chinese and English: "798 Art & Travel Post."

    Christine remembered her promise to send a postcard to her son, Arthur, in France. In the store, she found hundreds of elegant postcards.

    Having picked one, she asked if the store could have it delivered. The girl behind the counter said "Yes" and went on to explain that she could send it "slow delivery," to arrive on a specific date of her choosing in the future. It was early October and Arthur's birthday was in two months. It would be wonderful if he got a card from China on his birthday, Christine reckoned.

 ...]]> Culture Fri, 30 Oct 2009 21:07:26 +0800 /articles/09/1031/195754/MTk1NzU0tZ1vkpxi.html
]]> Culture Fri, 30 Oct 2009 21:07:19 +0800 /articles/09/1031/195753/MTk1NzUzLtFq7nzc.html [1] [2] [3] [4]

    The festival, the 7th of its kind, opened with the opera, "Xi Shi," which rediscovers the legend of the well-known beauty who invented the earliest tap dance in China.

    Another program thick with traditional Chinese flavor, "Cursive," was performed by Taiwan Cloud Gate Dance Theater. The work absorbed elements of calligraphy and was staged with slides of gigantic brush characters in the backdrop.

    The six-week event will be concluded by "The Jade Hairpin," a new play of Kunqu opera by internationally renowned writer Pai Hsien-yung.

    The Chinese works will al...]]> Culture Fri, 30 Oct 2009 21:07:06 +0800 /articles/09/1030/195642/MTk1NjQyNS9aHBf2.html     By Huang Xiaoyun

    TORONTO, Oct. 29 (Xinhua) -- Jonathan Leung had a very different childhood from others of his age. He started the wushu training at five at the Ji Hong Wushu & Taichi College in Canada's western city of Edmonton. And he had to practice certain movements every day while his peers went out to play.

    The 18-years-old Leung just represented Team Canada in the non-combative Taolu discipline at the 10th World Wushu Championships (WWC) at Ricoh Coliseum in Toronto, which was held from October 24 to 29. More than 600 competitors from 72 countries participated in the event held by International Wushu Federation every two years.

    Wushu, the Chinese term for Martial Arts, is divided into two groups. The combative elements of Wushu are known as Sanshou and feature spectacular full contact fighting. The non-combative, ritualistic elements ar...]]> Culture Fri, 30 Oct 2009 02:05:01 +0800 /articles/09/1030/195633/MTk1NjMzh4CxgKkw.html     BEIJING, Oct. 29 (Xinhua) -- National Taiwan Symphony Orchestra, the oldest symphony orchestra in the island, made a debut show at Chinese mainland's National Center for the Performing Arts (NCPA) in Beijing Thursday.

    The orchestra put on stage an array of works including Tchaikovsky's Symphony No. 5 and eight pieces from "Taiwan Tone Images", such as "Train Travel to I Lan" and "The Bell Toll of Lung-Shan Temple at night", composed by Bao Yuankai.

    "The programs blend both classics and works representative of local flavor," said Zhu Wenxin, an officer in charge of the project.

    "We extended an invitation to the orchestra about one year ago and they accepted it almost immediately," he said, "But due to busy schedules on both sides, we only made it tonight."

    The orchestra was founded in 1945 with Professor Tsai Chih-kue as it...]]> Culture Thu, 29 Oct 2009 21:06:33 +0800 /articles/09/1030/195632/MTk1NjMyMkrmRcQA.html     BEIJING, Oct. 29 (Xinhua) -- An opera containing the dance of "Xiangji", or the earliest tap dance in China, debuted at the National Centre for Performing Arts (NCPA) in Beijing Thursday.

    The opera, "Xi Shi", starred by Zhang Liping, a renowned soprano worldwide, was the NCPA's first self-developed work since it opened in July, 2007.

    Xi Shi, a well-known ancient beautiful beauty in the Spring and Autumn Period (770-476 BC). A native of Yue Kingdom she was offered to the king of Wu Kingdom. Legend goes that when she was washing silk at the riverside, fish in water were captivated by her beautiful feature and forgot to swim.

    Xi Shi has been regarded as the founder of Chinese tap dance because she invented a dance in which dancers wearing wooden sandals performed on wooden floor, said Xiao Yanying, a choreographer of the opera.

   &nb...]]> Culture Thu, 29 Oct 2009 21:06:26 +0800 /articles/09/1030/195631/MTk1NjMxYUodkla3.html     BEIJING, Oct. 29 (Xinhua) -- Chinese State Councilor Liu Yandong met here Thursday with members from outside the Chinese mainland attending the 10th meeting of the Advisory Board of Tsinghua University School of Economics and Management (SEM).

    Liu expressed gratitude to the advisory board for its active role in China's development and college construction, and applauded the members' efforts in promoting exchanges and cooperation between China and renowned global corporations as well as overseas universities.

    Liu also talked about China's current economic situation and development progress during the past six decades.

    The Advisory Board of the Tsinghua SEM, set up in 2000, consists of business leaders, politicians and scholars from the world's leading multinational corporations and academic institutions.

    Locals claim that Pingnan was once home to more than 100 of these distinctive wooden bridges that were recognized by UNESCO in September as an intangible cultural heritage.

The 1,000-year-old Wan'an Bridge in Pingnan county, East China's Fujian province.(Photo Source: China Daily)Photo Gallery>>>

    The other remaining bridges have been renovated and still play a significant role in village life. Every day you can see streams of villagers pouring across, tools in hand.

   &nb...]]> Culture Thu, 29 Oct 2009 02:07:20 +0800 /articles/09/1029/195516/MTk1NTE2d78AHrkC.html     BEIJING, Oct. 29 -- They call Jinan the "City of Springs" because 645 of them pour into a moat surrounding the capital of Shandong province.

    Here you can take a boat trip to Daming Lake and on the way enjoy a number of scenic spots.

Beautiful Daming Lake, the world's largest natural reservoir within a city, in Jinan, East China's Shandong province. (Photo Source: China Daily/Luo Bo)Photo Gallery>>>

    Black Tiger Spring, named for its deafening roar, originates from a 3-m deep and 1.7-m wide cave and spews water out of three tiger-head shaped stones. Local residents get their supply of potable water from here.

    "It's so...]]> Culture Thu, 29 Oct 2009 02:07:14 +0800 /articles/09/1029/195502/MTk1NTAyV5kPUf9m.html     SOFIA, Oct. 28 (Xinhua) -- Over 30 Chinese universities participated in an exhibition on the sidelines of the Sino-Bulgaria University Presidents' Forum, which opened here on Wednesday.

    At the exhibition, universities from China, including Tsinghua University, Peking University, and the Beijing University of Aeronautics and Astronautics (BUAA), took the opportunity to showcase their education programs to hundreds of young Bulgarians.

    "The academic relations between our two countries have a long history. More and more Bulgarians are interested in Chinese language and culture," said Svetlana Lomeva, Deputy Minister of Education, Youth and Science.

    She also said the forum would strengthen the relationship among the academic institutions of the two countries while exchanges of scientific achievements could foster economic development and better people's l...]]> Culture Wed, 28 Oct 2009 21:06:42 +0800 /articles/09/1027/195343/MTk1MzQzuatCuBlj.html     NANCHANG, Oct. 27 (Xinhua) -- With a posh house on the bank of the West Lake, one of China's most beautiful scenic spots in east city Hangzhou, Teng Ting, a ceramic artist, chose to live in a bathroom-turned bedroom nearly 400 km away from home in southern city Jingdezhen.

    "It is all worth it since only in Jingdezhen can I fulfill my dream," said the long-haired artist, who came to the city, China's porcelain capital, five years ago.

    Jingdezhen, a city in China's Jiangxi Province, has a history of producing quality pottery for 1700 years. But in recent years it is eclipsed by other porcelain-producing cities, like Foshan and Chaozhou in south China's Guangdong Province, which catch up quickly through mass production.

    "To study ceramics, Jingdezhen is the place, since it represents the top level of world porcelain art," Teng said.

  &nbs...]]> Culture Tue, 27 Oct 2009 07:06:54 +0800 /articles/09/1027/195319/MTk1MzE5FiZXip7s.html An exhibition of paintings by Chinese Han and Tibetan artists started in Milan on Monday, showing the sublime sceneries and traditional customs of China's Tibet.

Entitled as "Snow-Covered Plateau -- Chinese Painting Works," the six-day exhibition features 58 paintings depicting the extraordinary landscape of Tibet and the region's social and economic development in past 50 years.

Before the opening ceremony, eight Chinese painting artists, half of them ethnic Tibetans, held a seminar with local artists, exchanging views on arts and cooperation.

The exhibition, held in central Milan, was sponsored by China's State Council Information Office and Artists Association, the Chinese Embassy in Italy and the Italy-China Foundation.

Another nine-day exhibition of the same theme started on October 23 with 60 paintings in Rome, a city with profound cultural heritages and artistic achievements.

These exhibitions follo...]]> Culture Tue, 27 Oct 2009 03:27:12 +0800 /articles/09/1026/195208/MTk1MjA4njsrCDUV.html [1] [2] [3] [4] [5] [6] [7] [8]

    By Xin Dingding

    BEIJING, Oct. 25 -- Move over Palace Museum and Summer Palace, Bird's Nest and Water Cube are here.

    The two "modern wonders" pushed the historical landmarks to fourth and fifth spots in a poll on the must-see attractions in Beijing.

    The top tourist attraction, however, is still the Great Wall (Badaling section).

    Built for the 2008 Beijing Olympic Games, the Bird's Nest (or National Stadium) and the Water Cube (or National Aquatics Center) left many a famous landmark by the wayside to come in second and third in an opinion poll, released at the opening of the 11th Beijing International Tourism Festival on Friday.

    The Palace Museum (or Forbidden City), from where ...]]> Culture Sun, 25 Oct 2009 21:04:53 +0800 [1] [2] [3] [4]

    ROME, Oct. 23 (Xinhua) -- "Snow-covered Plateau", the Chinese painting exhibition on Tibet, was inaugurated here on Friday, drawing an enthusiastic welcome from the Italian public.

    People attending the opening ceremony said they were impressed by the displayed works, which depict traditional and daily scenes of modern Tibet and show unique techniques of Chinese painters.

A man visits an exhibition of paintings by Han and Tibetan artists in Rome, capital of Italy, Oct. 24, 2009. The nine-day exhibition kicking off here on Friday features 60 paintings depicting extraordinary landscape of China's Tibet and the region's social and economic development, giving the Italians and other Europeans an opportunity to enjoy the natural scenery and traditional customs of China's Tibet.Photo Ga...]]> Culture Sat, 24 Oct 2009 16:10:19 +0800 /articles/09/1023/194955/MTk0OTU1TtPvVnmP.html     NEW YORK, Oct. 21 (Xinhua) -- A festival that pays tribute to China's diverse and vibrant culture and its influence around the world opened here on Wednesday.

    "Perhaps more than ever before, the incredibly vibrant aspects of China and its culture have captured the imagination of the world today," said Clive Gillinson, Executive and Artistic Director of Carnegie Hall, which is hosting Ancient Paths, Modern Voices: A Festival Celebrating Chinese Culture.

    "China's extraordinary cultural heritage is one of the oldest and most remarkable in the world -- a fact made even more impressive when you consider how the country's ancient folk traditions inform its equally dynamic contemporary music and arts scene," he said, adding that China had made a huge impact on artists working around the world, and "we wanted to take the opportunity to explore this ongoing influence within our festiv...]]> Culture Fri, 23 Oct 2009 02:09:59 +0800 /articles/09/1023/194954/MTk0OTU0YgJJPG29.html     ROME, Oct. 21 (Xinhua) -- A two-day forum on economic, cultural and social development in China's Tibet opened here on Thursday.

    The forum, Tibet: Development Prospects and Cooperation Opportunities, has attracted more than 400 participants from China, Italy, Austria, the United States, India, Australia, Spain and Belgium.

Wang Chen, minister of the Information Office of the State Council of China, addresses the opening ceremony of the Second Forum on Tibet, in Rome, Italy, Oct. 22, 2009. (Xinhua Photo)Photo Gallery>>>

    By Xing Daiqi

    BEIJING, Oct. 23 -- This year marks the 115th anniversary of the birth of Mei Lanfang, considered as one of the greatest Peking Opera artists in modern history. Mei Lanfang is known for his portrayal of dan characters, a type of young female role. He founded his own innovative style of the art form that continues to evolve and further increase in popularity to this day.

    Peking Opera began just over 200 years ago and up until 1949, men played all of the roles, including the female characters. During his stage life, Mei added his own flair to traditional female roles, shaping a style of his own and forming the Mei school of Peking Opera. He is also credited as popularizing the art form overseas.

    "My father br...]]> Culture Fri, 23 Oct 2009 02:09:47 +0800 /articles/09/1022/194829/MTk0ODI5xogyRCqo.html Wang Guanyi's installation, "East Wind - Golden Dragon." (Photo: Shenzhen Daily)Photo Gallery>>>

    By Newman Huo

    BEIJING, Oct. 22 -- A contemporary art exhibition, "State Legacy: Research in the Visualization of Political History," is being staged at the OCT Contemporary Art Terminal in Overseas Chinese Town (OCT), Nanshan District of south China's Shenzhen following a two-month show in Manchester, Britain, from April through June this year.

    The exhibition, which will run though Nov. 30, presents works by five prominent contemporary Chinese artists: Wang Guangyi, Lu Hao, Sui Jianguo, Wang Jianwei and Zeng Li, who have all tried to respond to the achievements and problems of China's industrialization and modernization from different perspectives of visual art.

    The exhibition is the result of a two-year collaboration ...]]> Culture Thu, 22 Oct 2009 02:06:30 +0800     JAKARTA, Oct. 21 (Xinhua) -- Indonesia's Bali launched its first coral transplantation project in Nusa Dua on Tuesday in a bid to restore the coral reefs and boost marine tourism, a media reported here Wednesday.

    The project invited tourists, fishermen's groups and several organizations to join the Adopt a Coral program, by donating 25 U.S. dollars for a fragment of transplanted coral, the Jakarta Post said.

    The artificial submarine reef is a man-made construction, which is submerged to serve as a platform for transplanted reefs.

    The transplanted coral, made by growing small pieces of living coral on a biological substrate, was attached in an artificial submarine reef.

    There were 16 submarine reefs, each of which consists of 20 pieces of transplanted corals. The reefs were placed in some spots where the coral coverage was ...]]> Culture Wed, 21 Oct 2009 21:05:20 +0800 /articles/09/1021/194736/MTk0NzM2rBkBvm6I.html     BEIJING, Oct. 21 -- Sex education and related services need to be available to all Chinese youths, even those who are not married, say experts in the field of reproductive health.

    Though they may be sexually active, single Chinese youths can find themselves cut off from the free consultations and assistance offered to their young but married counterparts.

    "There is definitely a great need for that among China's more than 200 million young people aged 10 to 24, married and single alike," said Tang Kun, chairman of the China Youth Committee of the 5th Asian and Pacific Conference on Reproductive and Sexual Health and Rights.

    In China, single youths who are also sexually active are not well covered by government-sponsored sexual and reproductive health services like consultations, health checks and free contraceptives like condoms.

  &n...]]> Culture Wed, 21 Oct 2009 02:06:52 +0800 A girl climbs over a Chinese movable type exhibit during the 61st Frankfurt Book Fair on Saturday. (Photo: Shenzhen Daily)Photo Gallery>>>

    By Li Dan

    BEIJING, Oct. 20 -- Nearly 2,000 people attended the opening ceremony of a hall dedicated to Chinese culture Tuesday evening at the Frankfurt Book Fair, the world's largest book and copyright trading platform.

    This year's event, which closed Sunday, featured China as the guest of honor. Headlined "Tradition and Innovation," a total of 612 wide-ranging programs presented Chinese culture and literature to the world.

    Liu Binjie, minister of China's General Administration of Press and Publication (GAPP) and Juergen Boos, director of the Frankfurt Book Fair, signed an agreement in Beijing on May 31, 2007 to make the event happen.

    The Chinese-themed ha...]]> Culture Tue, 20 Oct 2009 07:12:46 +0800 /articles/09/1020/194639/MTk0NjM5YcL7JSL2.html     BEIJING, Oct. 20 -- More than 200 publishing houses from China brought nearly 10,000 different books to the six-day Frankfurt Book Fair that closed Sunday in Germany. Liu Binjie, minister of China's General Administration of Press and Publication (GAPP), predicted that Chinese book copyright exports may hit a record 2,000 this year.

    The China Publishing Group, a publishing giant that includes the People's Press, the People's Literature Press and many other State-owned presses, brought 426 kinds of books to the fair alone. They included 100 books published especially for the fair, with prospects of being translated into foreign languages and sold abroad, according to Li Pengyi, vice president of the group.

    "Five books we've brought, including 'Yu Dan's Reflections on The Analects,' 'A History of Chinese Civilization,' Yang Jiang's memoir 'We Three' and two other illustrated Chines...]]> Culture Tue, 20 Oct 2009 07:12:02 +0800