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Performing arts

Everyday China

Inside Qingdao’s underwater film studio

A heated six-metre-deep tank, underwater windows and hundreds of fixing points help Qingdao crews turn real water into controlled film scenes.

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History, Arts & Traditions

Why does an opera need so little scenery?

The music is not just a background added after the actors have finished telling the story. UNESCO describes its role in setting the pace, shaping the…

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History, Arts & Traditions

Can a tune remember a place far from home?

UNESCO names the dongxiao, a bamboo flute, and a pipa played horizontally, with a crooked neck, among Nanyin’s distinctive instruments. Knowing those…

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Everyday China

Can a city make a living from music lessons?

Wuxi’s music identity includes schools and instrument makers, not just concerts.

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History, Arts & Traditions

What can pottery tell us about an ancient beat?

Archaeological finds near Wuxi point to music long before a modern concert hall existed.

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Places & Regions

What does Qingdao’s film city need besides cameras?

Set workshops, facial capture, 3D scans and careful footage backups reveal how work moves through Qingdao’s film complex.

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Everyday China

Why sing behind a closed door?

A private karaoke room changes who has to be brave enough to sing.

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History, Arts & Traditions

How Dong singers meet without a conductor

Grand Song uses trained voices, shared repertoire and layered parts; the absence of a baton does not mean an absence of preparation.

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History, Arts & Traditions

Why does an opera scene take its time?

Kunqu can make a brief action last through voice, movement and attention.

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History, Arts & Traditions

Animation before computers

Take one actual film from the studio’s history: Where Is Mama?, the 1960 ink-wash animation about tadpoles searching for their frog mother. It gives the…

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