Chinese shows captivate audience at Afro-Chinese Arts Festival

A Chinese artist performs mask-changing dance at the opening ceremony of the 1st Afro-Chinese Arts and Folklore Festival, in Cairo, Egypt, July 21, 2016. [Photo/Xinhua]

Another show that really attracted the audience was the bian lian, or Mask-Changing dance, an ancient Chinese dramatic art.

Zhang Chuanlei, a bian lian artist told Xinhua that the "Egyptian audience here is marvelous, and they really like our show very much. It makes me happy and proud."

Mohamed Negm, a 47-year-old professor, brought his wife and children to watch the show.

"I am so interested to know more about the Chinese traditional folklore. It's a good chance to get close to the Chinese folklore. The Chinese performances are similar to ours," Negm said.

An art sculpture brought from China was unveiled at the Opera House yard during the festival as a symbol of Chinese-Egyptian friendship and cultural communication between the two ancient civilizations.

The 2016 Sino-Egyptian Culture Year was celebrated to mark the 60th anniversary of the establishment of their diplomatic relations in a bid to intensify their already strong cultural ties.

Event organizers said holding such a festival emphasizes Egypt's role as a window to cultures, arts, heritage and history.

"We thought of a cultural gathering not only between Egypt and China, but between Africa and China, since Egypt is in Africa and China is a friend that cares for Africa," Sohair Abdel-Qader, founder and president of the festival told Xinhua.

"We held the first edition in Cairo and we expect to hold it in China next year and rotate it among participant countries," she said.