Beijing's Arts Culture
1. Beijing Opera
Originally a form of local theatre, it spread all over the country and has become the national opera of China. About 200 years ago, the Qing Emperor Qianlong toured in southern China and developed an interest in the local operas. On his 80th birthday, he had local opera troupes to come to Beijing to perform for him. Some remained in Beijing after the celebration. The ones from Anhui and Hubei were incorporated the palace opera -Kunqu Opera- and became the Peking Opera.
Beijing Opera is the most popular of all the opera styles in China. It developed from classical singing and dance styles dating from the Ming Dynasty and gradually merged by the late 18th and early 19th centuries into the Beijing Opera we see today. Learn more...
2. Beijing Acrobatics
Acrobatics are a combination of folk art forms the started from about 2,000 years ago.
Chinese Acrobatics dates back to the 700BC which was named “Chiyou Battle” during the Zhou Dynasty (770BC-221BC), “Jiaodi Show” during the Qin Dynasty (221BC-207BC) and “Hundred Show” during the Han Dynasty (202BC-220AD).