(Translation by Byron John Eveson)
Recently, the "Hello, Four Seasons! Hello, Longgang!" Longgang District's large-scale outdoor international cultural tourism performing arts theater (international public cultural space) funded by the Longgang District Publicity and Culture Development Special Fund came to a wonderful conclusion. The entire event was organized by the Longgang District Park. It was hosted by Shenzhen Tea Expo Park on Shanjie Street and hosted by Shenzhen Silk Road New Language Art Troupe.
Today's international cultural exchange between China and foreign countries required Longgang, as an international cultural highland in the east. It’s intent, to build an international neighborhood and strengthen peace and friendship between Longgang and the world. Longgang combined the initiative of a community with a shared future for mankind and issued it to the world. It embodied cooperation and win-win between the East and the West. Longgang joined hands with international friends to implement President Xi's deployment of "international communication capabilities". Building Longgang as an international cultural highland neighborhood, and forming an international-level cultural tourism base. This base, having international influence in the Pearl River Delta Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Bay Area, enriched Longgang. By spending spare time with people in the Guangdong, Hong Kong and Macao Bay Area, an olive branch of friendship and peace was extended to the world, and send out the care and encouragement of a community with a shared future for mankind. This project gave full play to the international communication advocated by President Xi and the power of "international people-to-people diplomacy". This new force in international communication presented the real China through the eyes of foreigners. It tells Chinese stories well, to reflect the true, three-dimensional and comprehensive Longgang to the world. It externally promoted Longgang’s international image, praising the harmonious relationship between "man and nature" in Longgang, Shenzhen, China while respecting nature and caring for the beautiful mountains and seas of Longgang's international image. By protecting and inheriting the excellent Chinese world-class intangible cultural heritage "Twenty-Four Solar Terms" and other folk culture "Chinese symbols", the Longgang Hakka culture, enhanced Chinese cultural confidence, realizing the need for international cultural export.
The Silk Road News International Art Troupe selected 100 international artists of various art categories from 19 countries along the "Belt and Road" as "international cultural ambassadors". It engaged in international large-scale multimedia theater performances and international cultural exchanges and interactions, interpreting Chinese style to the world. Featuring representative music of countries along the “Belt and Road” and the foreign music and dance from other variety shows formed 4 international comprehensive programs. This fusion of Eastern and Western cultures was an international art feast for the people in the community and highlights Longgang and Shenzhen and played an important role in the construction of the central area. This central area being the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area and the pioneer demonstration area of socialism highlighted by Chinese characteristics. The Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area established itself as an international cultural center city and a modern civilized city that demonstrated the country's cultural soft power.
The outstanding resident opening program worth mentioning was the large-scale multimedia music and dance poem "Hello, Four Seasons! Hello, Longgang!" 》Residency (11 minutes). It was a beautiful music and dance poem dedicated to China and the world by artists from many countries who came to China. It gave full play to the "international communication power" of international artists in the world. The Chinese " "Music" and "Dance" expressed the artists enduring feelings for China that they have had for many years. It opened a "picture of spring" to the world, the beautiful Guangdong "Four Seasons" countryside, with Chinese and foreign families. It presented people and nature as a community of shared future for mankind in which nature and man are one. The "Twenty-Four Solar Terms Song" in "Xinhua Dictionary" tells how ancient Chinese wisdom guided the Chinese people in their farming and life year after year by respecting nature, advocating harmony, and the reincarnation of the four seasons. It is worthy of the world level dissemination and inheritance. The "Chinese and foreign family members" in Guangdong folk songs and Hakka Longgang folk customs reflected China's "cultural confidence" and "cultural renaissance". The performance also included the "intangible cultural heritage" of Guangdong. These elements being: Cantonese embroidery, Chaozhou tea, fishing lanterns, playing Luzi, Guangdong sun-dried duck sausage, Cantonese roasted goose, to name a few. The performance further demonstrated "movie + dance poetry" of Guangdong rural intangible cultural heritage. These themes included Hakka straw hats, Chaozhou embroidery, Hakka "Twenty-Four Solar Terms Song", etc. The performances were diverse and rich in content, presenting a rich audio-visual feast to the audience and received unanimous praise. "The performance is novel in form and promotes the excellent Chinese culture with wonderful artistic performances, which is eye-opening!" said Ms. Liu, a citizen who went on to say, “The Guangdong countryside in the cameras of foreign tourists is the ‘eyes’ through which the world sees China.”
The performance consisting of: Chinese dance - "Dunhuang Flying Sky", Jiaozhou Yangko "Flowing Clouds in the High Sky", "Girl by the Bridge", Guangdong dance "Colorful Clouds Chasing the Moon", "Eternal Waves", "National Style"; representatives of the Belt and Road Initiative Sensual dance---American country jive, Irish step dance, Spanish flamenco, French cancan, Hawaiian hula, etc., as well as opening ceremonies of famous Chinese music festivals: 2022 Nanshan Pop Music Festival, 2021 Sanya International The most popular music at the Electronic Music Festival and the 2019 Strawberry Concert; Chinese-style music by foreigners: such as: "Azalea" and "Our Spring" in multiple languages, popular songs "Descendants of the Dragon", "I Only Care About You", " "Sweet Honey", "In My Song"; World Intangible Cultural Heritage Band: Intangible Cultural Heritage Instruments from all over the world (including China), such as: Colombian GAGA, Czech Saw, Icelandic Hand Panpipe, Mexican Panpipe and Chinese Flute
; International variety show carnival: such as: Cirque du Soleil Stilt Clown, Chimelong Circus "Extreme Circle", etc. ;Chinese trend: the collision of Chinese and Western cultures, the blending and collision of cultures; International pop bands and world intangible cultural heritage band combinations: Little Pepper Band\Little Miss Sunshine Band\Black Cat Band\Queen Band\GEOGYE hand disc solo
In addition, there were 4 immersive international public cultural and art spaces and International square dance held by Dongli Xiaoyuan Container International Public Art Space. Asserting that Square dance is no longer the patent of "aunts", it should be for "community families" as a unit, suitable for all ages. It demonstrated the dance to be fashionable, youthful, energetic and a healthy group exercises.
It created the first international public cultural space in Guangdong, Hong Kong and Macao, and the first domestic international version of the "Heart to Heart" resident outdoor large-scale performance brand. The performance was rich in content and novel in subject matter. It used a unique international narrative perspective to display the "Chinese symbols" of Longgang Hakkas from an international perspective and promoted China and Longgang to the outside world. This stage masterpiece was the first in China to reflect the "Twenty-Four Solar Terms" of Hakka folk culture. It was a Chinese intangible cultural heritage masterpiece with international communication power and an international performance with a world style. Narrating from the "first-person" perspective of a foreigner, we can see the beautiful, real and three-dimensional China, the "Chinese symbols" of mountains, seas and Longgang, such as the twenty-four solar terms, Hakka customs, the Chinese national trend of international friends, etc.
Immersive international performance method, strong sense of substitution, high interactivity; the international performance lineup and international creative team’s presentation realized the fusion and dialogue between East and West. A national large-scale performance international creative and international performance team; the Silk Road New Language Art Troupe consists of 327 international actors from 19 countries serving as the main creative and performance team. This Sino-foreign cooperation, an east-west dialogue of "national style + world style", focused on international exchanges, and a "people-centered" performing arts interaction and creative direction, it was warmly loved by the people.