8th Wuqiao International Acrobatics Festival OpensThe 8th China Wuqiao International Circus Festival (CWICF) opened today in Shijiazhuang, capital of north China's Hebei Province, bringing to the stage acrobatics and magic performance artists around the world. Some 25 acrobatics performances and 12 magic shows are on the schedule of events. Artists participating are from 11 countries and regions including Russia, the United States, Italy, France, Sweden, and Germany.Chinese performers are from the China Acrobatic Troupe, and some local acrobatic troupes from the city of Chengdu, Anhui Province, Hebei Province and Nanjing, and artists from the Comprehensive Arts Troupe of China Taiwan Opera College. During the 8th CWICF, a large-scale magic competition will be held for the first time. Vying for prizes will be artistic troupes from Democratic People's Republic of China, the United States, France, Canada, and Hong Kong. Other sideline activities have been arranged, including exhibitions of local folk art, a concert of Chinese music, Beijing opera. The festival, well-known to the world, has attracted many overseas and domestic media. The State TV Station of Italy has bought the right to broadcast the entire festival to Europe at a cost of 60,000 US dollars marking a breakthrough for the prestigious acrobatic event to enter the European mass media market. The biennial event started in 1987, and has offered a stage for communication and competition between nearly 200 troupes from 30 countries and regions. At the same time, the business-oriented activities such as the economic and trade talks have achieved 3,000 cooperative projects and attracted about 20 billion RMB (2.4 billion US dollars) investment. |
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