On the evening of Oct.11, the 12th Beijing International Drama and Dance Season opened with a living theater production of "Marco Polo." Sponsored by the Beijing Municipal Bureau of Culture, the grand event is hosted by the National Center for the Performing Arts.
From Oct. 11 to Dec. 25, 2014, 20 dramas from seven countries and regions and 14 dance performances are scheduled to be staged for a total of nearly 100 performances in various theaters throughout Beijing. Sixteen of the programs are also part of the Sixth Theater Olympics that is going to be held in Beijing in November 2014.
In addition to programs from domestic companies such as "Little Mermaid" by the National Ballet of China and "The Dream of the Red Chamber" by the Northern Kunqu Opera Theater, several avant-garde theatre and dance performance from the Netherlands, the U.K. and France will be staged in the capital.
Around ten lectures and theme exhibitions are also being organized by the National Center for the Performing Arts during the performance season. Many art troupes will also perform in residential communities, scientific parks and cultural centers around the city in order to have close contact with ordinary residents and show them the charms of art.