Visiting Beijing to see "Dream Return to the Great Wall: Cranes from All Directions," experiencing the charm of the Great Wall; heading to Hangzhou to witness "West Lake and Dongpo," immersing in the romantic bond between Su Dongpo and West Lake; traveling to Xi'an to witness "Dream Return to the Great Tang," traversing through a thousand years to appreciate the magnificent splendor of the Tang Dynasty... In recent years, many places have vigorously supported the development of cultural and tourism performances, polishing the cultural image of cities and empowering urban cultural tourism with the economy of performances.

Performing Arts and Cities: Interconnectedness

With economic and social development and the improvement of living standards, more and more people are no longer satisfied with watching performances locally but are willing to travel to a city for a show.

According to the China Performance Industry Association, in the third quarter of this year and during the National Day holiday, the demand for performances combined with travel and tourism needs, resulting surged across China, fostering a nationwide uptick in performance consumption. Large-scale shows are deeply integrated with resources from various scenic spots, continuously driving inter-city effects. In the third quarter, the number of large and medium-sized tourism performances nationwide increased by 12% year-on-year. 

Shanghai's "Journey through Time and Space," a stand out resident performing arts project, shines among numerous cultural and tourism performing arts projects nationwide. This project seamlessly blends spectacular acrobatics, innovative technology, diverse artistic elements on stage, combined with Shanghai's historical culture and modern charm, it vividly showcases the brand characteristic of "Presenting Shanghai to the World," earning unanimous praise from audiences and tourists both domestically and internationally.

Wan Yan, Director of the Office of Shanghai Journey through Time and Space Cultural Development Co., Ltd., stated to a reporter from China City News that since its premiere in September 2005, "Journey through Time and Space" has accumulated over 6,000 performances, attracting over 6 million spectators from around the world. "‘Journey through Time and Space’ has not only become a cultural icon showcasing Shanghai's uniqueness but has also added luster to Shanghai as a world-renowned tourist city," Wan Yan said.

"Without classics, there is no residency; without openness, there are no high-quality products." Hua Jian, Director of the Cultural Industry Research Center at the Shanghai Academy of Social Sciences and the chief expert of a major project funded by the National Social Science Fund, stated in an interview with China City News that in the era of globalization, to create sustainable high-quality performing arts, it is necessary to attract and integrate global resources. This not only involves incorporating international best practices and talent in the creation, performance, and stage design of productions but also focusing on domestic and international markets for operations, ticketing, and promotion.

"The creation of ‘Journey through Time and Spacedrew inspiration from renowned projects like Cirque du Soleil in Canada, learning from their deep audience interactions worldwide, while also delving into the characteristics of Shanghai's local culture. Through long-term practice, it has become a shining cultural icon for the city," Hua Jian explained.

Driving Consumption Growth with High-Quality Performing Arts

Cultural creation is the source, and cultural consumption is the gateway. Nowadays, cultural and tourism performances are transitioning from a single ticket economy to a comprehensive scene economy, continuously activating new urban consumption dynamics.

"When ‘Journey through Time and Space’ was first developed, the surrounding area was a relatively desolate industrial zone. Later, with its year-round performances and brand influence, it gradually transformed into one of the most densely populated areas in Shanghai for entertainment, scientific innovation, film and television, education, commerce, tourism, and esports resources within a 3 km radius," Hua Jian stated. 

Wu Liyun, Executive Vice Dean of the China Culture and Tourism Industry Research Institute at the Beijing Second Foreign Language University, mentioned that creating high-quality performing arts projects, incorporating content, dining, shopping, and entertainment products, is conducive to extending the stay of tourists and audiences in the relevant cities, transforming "traffic" into "residence," bringing momentum and growth to the city's economy.

Sun Daqing, Member of the Party Committee and Vice President of the Central Academy of Drama, told China City News that performing arts activities themselves are the most dazzling promotion platform for urban cultural tourism. "Whether it's an arts festival or a performing arts district, they can become highlights of urban cultural tourism. Like the famous Broadway in New York and the West End in London, they represent the pinnacle of the performing arts industry and demonstrate significant economic driving force. Representative performing arts activities have actually transcended mere performance categories. Through the test of time and market, they have become cultural symbols of cities and even national cultural treasures," Sun Daqing said.

Focused Efforts to Build the "City of Performing Arts"

China City News noted that multiple cities are vying to establish themselves as the "City of Performing Arts," such as Beijing and Shanghai. As early as 2017, Shanghai issued the "Fifty Cultural and Creative Measures to Accelerate the Innovative Development of the Local Cultural and Creative Industry," known as the "Culture and Creativity 50." Among them, the goal was set to develop Shanghai into the "City of Performing Arts in Asia." In 2023, Beijing for the first time included "Efforts to build the 'City of Performing Arts'" in the Government Work Report and specifically formulated the "Three-Year Action Plan for Building the 'City of Performing Arts' in Beijing (2023-2025)."

In addition to Beijing and Shanghai, cities like Xi'an, Chengdu, Wuhan, and Shenzhen have all made plans for the development of the performing arts industry.

Hua Jian stated that each city has its own resource endowments, and culture is the core element and intrinsic driving force of future urban competition. The continuous development of the performing arts industry represents the vigorous energy of cultural prosperity gushing forth. Building the "City of Performing Arts" is a long-term, complex system project that requires the joint efforts of governments, enterprises, institutions, and society.

Wu Liyun proposed that excellent cultural and tourism performing arts projects need to possess five characteristics: cultural significance, with performances representing local culture to give them unique competitiveness and influence; professionalism, ensuring performances are done to perfection; technological innovation, using technology to enhance audience immersion and experience; market orientation, effectively meeting audience demands to attract attention and bring in traffic; and comprehensiveness, where cities or scenic areas not only create a performance but also form a complete product system centered around the performance, integrating with surrounding businesses to promote each other.