Intl. art festival signs projects online

THE China Shanghai International Arts Festival signed 11 cooperation memorandums online with art agencies and organizations from 10 countries last week.

In addition, a Lithuanian culture week will be one of the highlights at the 22nd China Shanghai International Arts Festival, scheduled to show the artistic charm of music and dance programs from the Baltic country.

Founded in 1999, the China Shanghai International Arts Festival provides one of the largest performing arts events in China. It normally opens in mid-October.

NCPA to cancel shows, activities in April

THE National Center for the Performing Arts (NCPA) will cancel all performances and related activities and be temporarily closed to visitors in April due to the novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19), according to an announcement recently released on its official website.

The art center, also one of the landmarks in Beijing, has been closed to the public since Jan. 24 and has since suspended all its art performances.

Ticket refunds will be issued until the end of June via multiple online channels, according to its official website.

Performing arts revenue reaches 20 billion yuan

THE total revenue of China’s performing arts market reached 20 billion yuan (US$2.8 billion) in 2019, with an increase of 7.29 percent year-on-year, according to statistics released by the Lighthouse Research Institute and ticketing firm Damai last week.

Theatrical production revenue was about 8.4 billion yuan, concert revenue was about 4.3 billion yuan and the revenue of performance in tourism was around 7.4 billion yuan.

People born after 1990 have become the mainstream audiences of the performing arts market. Two of the most popular reality shows in 2019 were “Street Dance of China” by video streaming provider Youku and “The Big Band” by video streaming service iQiyi.

The report also named the top three artists with the most-watched concerts in 2019: Taiwan pop singer-songwriter Jay Chou, Taiwan rock band Mayday and mainland singer-songwriter Zhang Jie. (SD-Agencies)