The classic Chinese dance drama Silk Road thrilled the audiences with colorful pageantry, exciting choreography and a message of international friendship in the Tianqiao Performing Arts Center in Beijing on May 4.

The classic Chinese dance drama Silk Road is staged at the Tianqiao Performing Arts Center in Beijing on May 4.

The classic Chinese dance drama tells a story: Yunis, a wealthy Persian trader, is lost in a swirling dust storm in the middle of the Gobi Desert until the beautiful Ying Niang and her father Magic-brush Zhang, a painter, come to his rescue.

Delighting the audiences with dazzling stage effects, lighting, costumes and stunning choreography, Silk Road spreads the artistic culture and historical traditions of Dunhuang and the prosperity of the ancient Silk Road in its own way. It is also a tale of international friendship.

The show was created by the Gansu Dance Theater and has various versions for different occasions.

The version staged at the ongoing “Meet in Beijing” Arts Festival is the 2008 version, which made its debut in the same venue 10 years ago, according to Lu Jinlong, head of the Theater.

Besides the 1979, 2008 and 2016 versions, the Theater is developing a new version that adds more elements for tourism, Lu said.

As the first large classic ethnic dance performance created after China’s reform and opening-up policy, Silk Road has been shown more than 2,800 times since 1979. It was performed in the Democratic People's Republic of Korea two years after its debut.

The troupe has taken the performance to seven European countries including Algeria in 1982 and staged it for profit in Japan in 1984. In 1985, it toured to a group of Northern European countries and the former Soviet Union.

To date, the Silk Road has visited over 20 countries, spreading the ancient Dunhuang culture around the world. With the help of the China Arts & Entertainment Group, the play has delighted audiences in the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts in Washington and the Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts in New York.

The troupe will take the production to Australia from September to October.

Wang Xiuqin, general manager of the China Performing Arts Agency said the Silk Road is a bench mark in promoting Chinese culture abroad and has made great contributions to that cause.