Chinese acrobatic troupe participates in international circus festival in Ukraine
Artists from Central China’s Hunan Province are participating in the 3rd Kiev International Youth Festival of Circus Art “Golden Kashtan,” which kicked off in the Ukrainian capital on Wednesday.
The acrobatic troupe from the Hunan Acrobatics Art Theatre is among dozens of participants, who came to the festival from 12 countries and regions.
During the three-day festival, circus professionals and amateurs aged no more than 25 years old will give a total of 52 performances.
Zhao Shuangwu, director general of the Hunan Acrobatics Art Theatre, said her theater decided to participate in the festival to introduce Chinese art and culture to the Ukrainian public.
“It will help to strengthen cultural exchanges between the two countries. In addition, thanks to this platform, we can show the world the circus art and culture of Hunan Province,” Zhao told the Xinhua News Agency.
During the inauguration of the festival, the Hunan Acrobatics Art Theatre signed a cooperation memorandum with the National Circus of Ukraine and China’s Cultural and Arts Center in Ukraine.
“Thanks to this, in the future we will be able to further promote the culture of China and Hunan Province in Ukraine,” Zhao said.
Lyudmila Shevchenko, director of the National Circus of Ukraine, spoke highly of the Chinese circus culture, saying it already enjoys popularity among Ukrainian artists.
“The Chinese circus is considered to be one of the best circuses in the world. When Chinese actors come here, everyone knows that they will win the gold. It has always been the case. Now, our children are also learning and growing to this level,” Shevchenko explained to Xinhua.
She said that Ukraine and China carry out frequent exchanges in the sphere of circus art, which helps the peoples of the two countries to better understand each other.
Founded in 1959, the Hunan Acrobatics Art Theatre has traveled to dozens of countries and regions, introducing Chinese traditional culture and art to foreign audiences and promoting friendship with people of different nations around the world.