Listings: Beijing

STAGE

Catch the puppet show Imperial Commissioner adopted from Russian master Gogol's work. The condensed 80-minute show captures the essence of the satirical story.

7:30 pm, April 22-24

The Great Theater of China Nationalities, 49 Fuxingmennei Dajie, Xicheng District

6602-2530

China Central Opera House will stage the traditional Peking Opera repertoire Farewell My Concubine. The play is based on a real story of the Qin Dynasty (221-207 BC).

7:30 pm, April 25-27

Poly Theater, Dongsi Shitiao, Chaoyang District

6506-5345

The China Central National Song and Dance Ensemble will stage a gala performance Harmonious China. With a grand cast of more than 300, the performance features representatives of ethnic dancing repertoires.

7:30 pm, April 19

Beizhan Theater, Xizhimenwai Dajie, Haidian District

6835-4455

The Chinese Acrobatics Group, established in 1950, has toured more than 80 countries, won numerous international awards and has helped foster friendships between China and other nations. Its performance includes traditional acrobatics, a circus show, magic, old Beijing folk plays and more. The show blends music, dance, local opera and martial arts.

7:30 pm, daily

Tiandi Theater, Dongsi Shitiao, 100 m north of Poly Theater, Chaoyang District

6416-9893

CONCERTS

Percussion concerto The Holy Fire 2008, composed by Tang Jianping draws inspiration from Greek mythology and incorporates Chinese melodies. Other pieces to be played at the concert are Olympic Fanfare composed by John Williams for the 1984 Olympic Games; and

Summon the Heroes for the 1996 Olympic Games.

7:30 pm, April 28

Forbidden City Concert Hall in Zhongshan Park, Northwest of Tian'anmen Square

6559-8285

The 2008 Beijing International Congress on Women in Music will kick off at the National Center for the Performing Arts. Twelve concerts will be held, with the programs including 118 pieces of works. Created by women musicians from 20 countries and regions, they cover symphony, orchestral, wind, string, chamber, folk and electronic music.

7:30 pm, April 18

National Center for the Performing Arts, west of Tian'anmen Square

5883-6800

Classic concertos The Butterfly Lovers and Yellow River will be performed by the symphony orchestra of the China national Opera and Dance Company. The two pieces, violin and piano concertos, have been popular in China for about 50 years.

7:30 pm, May 1

Beijing Concert Hall, 1 Beixinhuajie, Xicheng District

6605-7006

Tchaikovsky's famous works, suites from Swan Lake, Nutcracker and Piano Concerto No 1 will be performed by the symphony orchestra of the China National Opera and Dance Company. Conductor is Fan Tao, and pianist Meng Yuqing.

7:30 pm, April 25

Forbidden City Concert Hall in Zhongshan Park, Northwest of Tian'anmen Square

6559-8285

Exhibitions

Works by 16 contemporary artists from Taiwan will be featured in a retrospective of ceramic art over the past 40 years. These works convey both aesthetic and practical value. Zhang Hemin's Sand Beach displays an exaggerated approach, while Yu Chengzhong employs a surrealistic technique.

9 am-5 pm, until April 20

National Art Museum of China, 1 Wusi Dajie, Dongcheng District

6401-7076

The 2008 Biannual Beijing Women Artists Exhibition gathers the works by more than 140 women artists from 17 countries and regions. Entitled Her Presence in Colors, the exhibition, the eighth of its kind since 1993, is dedicated to the Beijing 2008 Olympic Games and expresses the artists hope for world peace and harmony, says organizer Zao Heng, herself a participating artist from Beijing

9 am-5 pm, until April 25

National Art Museum of China, 1 Wusi Dajie, Dongcheng District

6401-7076

A series of exhibits, featuring various uses for Hermes scarves is now on display. The designer of the show, American artist Hilton McConnico, is a stylist, designer, photographer, filmmaker and screen writer.

9am-4pm, until April 18

Today Art Museum, 32 Baiziwan Lu, Chaoyang District

5876-9690

The exhibition Napoleon I and the Louvre displays 100 sets of art works from the collection of the Louvre, including paintings, sculptures, ceramics, furniture, and decorative objects. It is part of the Sino-French Cultural Exchanges 2008.

8:30 am-5 pm, until July 3

The Meridian Gate (Wu Men) of the Palace Museum, 4 Jingshan Qianjie, Dongcheng District

8511-7575

Wu Zhengyan, a young artist from Shanxi province, is holding her first solo exhibition in Beijing. On display are about 30 acrylic paintings she has done on ready-made cloths with peony flower patterns she bought from rural areas in her home province. The peony flower in Chinese culture symbolizes happiness, fortune and good luck; the peony-flower patterned clothes are widely on bedclothes in northern China, especially in rural areas. Wu has given new meaning to the traditional symbol in her works.

11 am -6 pm, until April 30

Mountain Art Beijing, 798 Art Zone, 4 Jiuxianqianlu, Chaoyang District

6431-9498

Cultural relics from Mapuche of Chile show the brilliant civilization of one of the oldest aborigines in America. Exhibits include silver ware, textile products, ceramics, instruments and stone vessels.

9 am-5 pm, until June 20

Capital Museum, 16 Fuxingmenwai Dajie, Xicheng District

6337-0491/2

Wang Qiang uses straight lines, circles and contrasting colors to experiment with the effects of optical stimulation.

10 am-6 pm, until April 20

Marella Gallery, 4, Jiuxianqiao Lu, Chaoyang District

6433-4055

Luan Xiaojie's work present both humor and profound loneliness. Viewers can sense the isolation, loneliness and narcissism of the characters Luan creates.

9:30 am-6 pm, until April 21

Qin Gallery, 1-1E Huawei Li, north of Beijing Curio City, Chaoyang District

8779-0461

Photographer Yang Yi focuses on his hometown, Kai county, a small town with a history of 1,800 years in Chongqing. The old town will be submerged under water in 2009 as part of the Three Gorges project. Employing digital techniques, Yang shows the town under water with people lingering the streets with oxygen masks.

10 am-5 pm, until April 25

Paris Beijing Photo Gallery, 4 Jiuxianqiao Lu, Chaoyang District

8459-9263

The Sixth China International Golf Product and Service Fair features exhibits from domestic and overseas producers.

9 am-4 pm, April 21-23

National Agricultural Exhibition Hall, 16 Dongsanhuan Beilu, Chaoyang District

6501-8877

China National Geography will launch a photography show this weekend at Peking University. Focusing on nature and environmental protection, the show will coincide with World Earth Day on April 22 and tour five universities around China over the next two months. The exhibit's 50 photographs appeal for public awareness of environmental protection.

10 am-5 pm, until April 23

Peking University, Haidian District

6484-2130

Selected works of contemporary Chinese art are on show at the National Art Museum of China in downtown Beijing. The exhibition entitled Facing Reality, jointly sponsored by the Museum Moderner Kunst Stiftung Ludwig Wien from Austria and the Chinese museum, features oil paintings, sculptures, installations, video works, mixed media works and photographs by 27 vanguard Chinese artists.

"Realism has been the mainstream of modern Chinese art; contemporary artists have likewise been inspired by great changes in China today," says Fan Di'an, director of the National Art Museum of China.

"The difference is, unlike the older generations, young contemporary artists put their focus on raising questions instead of simply eulogizing reality."

9 am -5 pm, until April 27

National Art Museum of China, 1 Wusi Dajie, Dongcheng District

8403-3500

Veteran photographer and graphic designer Lu Xiaozhong is holding his solo photo exhibition with 50 digitally modified abstract photos. Lu has created drawing inspirations from his previous, realistic works of Chinese folk art, landscapes and portraits.

10 am -5 pm, until April 19

Ying Art Gallery, Qixing Zhongjie, 798 Art Zone, 4 Jiuxianqiaolu, Chaoyang District

6437-9853

As part of the Cultural Year of Greece in China, an exhibition featuring Greek national treasures is being staged in Beijing. Entitled Masterpieces of an Aegean Culture from Museum of Cycladic Art and National Archaeological Museum in Athens, the exhibition presents 36 rarely seen artifacts - marble figurines, marble and ceramic pots, bronze and stone tools, dating back to the late 4th and 3rd millennia BC, a period which gave birth to one of the earliest European cultures, organizers say.

10 am -5:30 pm, until May 15.

Art Museum of the Imperial City, 9 Changpuheyan Lu, Nanchizi Dajie, Dongcheng District

8511-5373

(China Daily 04/18/2008 page20)