Huji Shuhui event in Binzhou showcases folk art performances

A quyi performance takes place at the Huji Shuhui event. [Photo by Zheng Haitao for chinadaily.com.cn]

A Huji Shuhui event, a quyi gathering event and a national intangible cultural heritage project kicked off on Feb 21 in Huimin county – in Binzhou city, in East China's Shandong province – attracting more than 400 folk artists from across the country.

Quyi is a general term for various forms of traditional Chinese folk art, such as ballad singing, storytelling, comic dialogues, clapper talks and drum songs.

The five-day event features 13 themed activities, including performances of top quyi programs, as well as exhibitions and sales of handicrafts and other intangible cultural heritage products.

This year's Huji Shuhui features 13 themed activities. [Photo by Zheng Haitao for chinadaily.com.cn]

A total of 296 programs and 63 genres of quyi will be staged during the event, showcasing the rich and colorful folk culture of China.

The Huji Shuhui originated in the Song (960-1279) and Yuan (1271-1368) dynasties, flourished in the Ming (1368-1644) and Qing (1644-1911) dynasties and has been passed on through the generations to this day. It has a history of more than 800 years and is known as the "living fossil of Chinese folk art".

Every year on the 12th day of the first lunar month, quyi artists from all over the country gather in Huji, a village in Huimin county, to perform and tell stories.

Huimin county has been recognized as a Chinese Quyi Township by the Chinese Quyi Artists Association. (Edited by Fan Yuanyuan)