Culture Beat: Ballet dance ‘Flag’ to hit the stage in August

Promotional material for Qizhi Photo: Courtesy of Beijing Tianqiao Performing Arts Center

Ballet dance 'Flag' to hit the stage in August

The show Qizhi, or Flag, will hit the stage at the Beijing Tianqiao Performing Arts Center on August 1 and 2. 

It is the first Chinese ballet to tell the story of the Guangzhou Uprising in 1927. 

It connects the meaning of real life with historically significant events to reproduce a grand historical picture of the martyrs who fought for the survival of the country and the liberation of the people in the 1920s.

At the same time, it maintains strict ballet techniques and artistic and aesthetic style, and integrates traditional Chinese culture to create a distinctive Chinese aesthetic.

A brand-new 'Legend of the White Snake' 

Ballet The Legend of the White Snake will also be held at the Beijing Tianqiao Performing Arts Center on August 5 and 6. 

The show is based on one of the four well-known folk legends in China. It tells a sorrowful story about a white snake fairy who turns into a human being called Bai ­Suzhen. Bai brings her younger sister, a green snake fairy named Xiaoqing, to the West Lake in Hangzhou, East China's Zhejiang Province where she meets and falls in love with a pharmacy apprentice. However, the two are later separated by the monk Fahai.

The ballet will depart somewhat from the original story by adding new characters and new elements, and changing the look of traditional characters such as Fahai.

The ballet will be performed by the Guangzhou Ballet Troupe. The troupe has always sought to explore new directions in Chinese ballet in line with the times and from new perspectives.