This year's Spring Festival celebrations have been hailed a success in Zhangjiagang, Jiangsu province, attracting many local residents to the cultural performances throughout the city from Feb 8 to 14.

The energetic dragon dancers from the city's Nanfeng Town got the crowd excited in Century Square, many of whom sacrificing their family reunions to put on the show.

Dragon dance is a form of traditional dance often performed during Spring Festival celebrations. [Photo/zjgonline.com.cn]

The traditional performances proved popular with the locals. "We came all the way from Phoenix Town to watch the show," said a resident, "It is really nice to see traditional culture passed down through the ages."

Another resident said despite the regret of not going back to his hometown, taking part in the performance made him really appreciate the distinctive festival atmosphere.

Chinese opera is a popular form of musical theatre dating back to early periods in the country’s history, incorporating music, song and dance, martial arts and acrobatics. [Photo/zjgonline.com.cn]

The city's theater held classic opera shows for opera lovers during the period. Some people also enjoyed Suzhou Pingtan, a form of storytelling and ballad performance in the Suzhou dialect, at Changchun Garden.

Suzhou Pingtan is a form of storytelling and ballad performance in the Suzhou dialect. [Photo/zjgonline.com.cn]

To cope with the influx of residents during the Spring Festival, the city's cultural places all extended their opening times. The municipal library hosted various interactive activities where people wrote Spring Festival couplets, guessed riddles and read. The city's cultural volunteer team also launched 70 service activities to help vulnerable groups have a happy New Year.

Children read in the library during Spring Festival. [Photo/zjgonline.com.cn]