What's on

Titanic

When: Dec 12-14, 7:30 pm; Dec 14 and 15, 2:30 pm

Where: Guangzhou Opera House

With music and lyrics by Maury Yeston and a book by Peter Stone, this 1997 Tony Award winner for Best Musical is set on the RMS Titanic, the world-class ocean liner which sank on its maiden voyage on April 15, 1912.

In the play the owner, designer, and captain of the newly built liner stand in awe of the impressive feat of engineering. As the crew arrives and the passengers board, the mosaic of characters is introduced, and their conversations reveal their social status and satisfaction with life.

When the ship's owner demands that the captain increase the speed to arrive in New York early, the Titanic tragically collides with an iceberg, tossing the voyage into a state of chaos and the passengers into a situation of immense danger.

Joe Louis Walker

When: Dec 26 and 27, 7:30 pm

Where: Blue Note Beijing

Joe Louis Walker, a musician from the United States, is a Blues Hall of Fame inductee and four-time Blues Music Award winner. A true powerhouse guitar virtuoso, unique singer and prolific songwriter, he has toured extensively throughout his career, performed at renowned music festivals, and earned a legion of dedicated fans.

In 1975, burned out on blues, Walker turned to singing for the next decade with a gospel group, the Spiritual Corinthians. When the Corinthians played the 1985 New Orleans Jazz and Heritage Festival, he was inspired to embrace his blues roots again. He formed the group the Boss Talkers and merged his gospel, jazz, soul, funk and rock genres.

Vienna Royal Orchestra New Year Concert

When: Jan 2, 7:15 pm

Where: Shanghai Grand Theater

The Vienna Royal Orchestra Austria is composed of musicians from the leading Viennese orchestras, including the philharmonic, symphony and radio symphony orchestras.

The concert presents a unique selection of Viennese music with pieces from Mozart, Strauss, Lanner, Lehar, Schrammel and Haydn.

Kunqu Opera: The Peony Pavilion

When: Jan 3 and 4, 7:30 pm

Where: National Center for the Performing Arts, Beijing

The Peony Pavilion is a romantic tragicomedy play written by dramatist Tang Xianzu (1550-1616) in 1598.

Produced by the Northern Kunqu Opera Theater, it depicts a love story between Du Liniang and Liu Mengmei. Their love conquers all difficulties, transcending time and space, life and death.

Yue Opera: Southeast the Peacocks Fly

When: Jan 4, 7:15 pm

Where: Shanghai Grand Theater

Yue Opera is well-known for its mellifluous melodies, lyricism and aesthetically appealing staging.

Created by the Shanghai Yue Opera Group, Southeast the Peacocks Fly is about a tragic love story taking place in the Eastern Han Dynasty (25-220). Liu Lanzhi from a common family got married to Jiao Zhongqing, who grew up in a well-known official family which was in decline at that time.

Though they loved each other, they were separated due to differences in family status. Liu was dispossessed by her mother-in-law from the family and then forced by her elder brother to remarry.

Leonidas Kavakos Violin Recital

When: Jan 12, 7:30 pm

Where: National Center for the Performing Arts, Beijing

Leonidas Kavakos is recognized as a violinist and artist of rare quality, known for the integrity of his playing and for his virtuosity and superb musicianship.

By age 21, Kavakos had won three major competitions: the International Jean Sibelius Violin Competition (1985), the Paganini Competition (1988) and the Naumburg International Piano Competition (1988).

Lord of the Dance

When: Jan 26-28, 2:30 pm and 7:30 pm; Jan 29 and 30, 7:30 pm

Where: National Center for the Performing Arts, Beijing

Lord of the Dance is an Irish musical and dance production that was choreographed and produced by Irish-American dancer Michael Flatley.

In 1994, Flatley changed the face of Irish dance forever with his breathtaking creation Riverdance. He broke the mold of traditional Irish dancing by incorporating upper-body movement and creating edgy rhythmic patterns that departed from the traditional.

Flatley went on to create Lord of the Dance, which made its debut at the Point Theater in Dublin in 1996. It was inspired by ancient Irish folklore and features the Lord of the Dance battling an evil force for control of Planet Ireland.

The Little Mermaid

When: Jan 28-30, 7:30 pm

Where: National Center for the Performing Arts, Beijing

Adapted from the fairy tale by Danish writer Hans Christian Andersen, The Little Mermaid is a coproduction by Danish and Chinese artists.

The play is directed by Torkild Lindebjerg and composed by Dane Jens Tolsgaard.

It follows the journey of a mermaid who is willing to give up her life in the sea to gain a human soul.

Ksenija Sidorova

When: Feb 16, 2:30 pm

Where: Guangzhou Opera House

Ksenija Sidorova is a genre-crossing player described as "the princess of the accordion".

The Latvian-born musician, who was encouraged to take up the instrument by her grandmother, continued her education in Britain, where she became a prizewinning undergraduate at the Royal Academy of Music.

Her debut album is an ambitious recreation of Carmen for the accordion in 2016, incorporating Latin, Asian, European and North American musical styles, which is driven by her identification with Bizet's free-spirited femme fatale.