On November 22, the "Cultural Tour of Beijing Opera , Beijing Opera Fun for Kids" activity, sponsored by the Beijing Municipal Bureau of Culture and Tourism, organized by the Beijing Overseas Cultural Exchange Center and implemented by Beijing Poly Forbidden City Theater Management Co., Ltd., was successfully held. Tong Xiufen, a representative inheritor of Beijing Municipal Intangible Cultural Heritage Project, was invited to conduct online display,  interact with Hong Kong teenagers and guide Hong Kong teenagers to draw Beijing Opera masks. This activity is one of the series of activities of "Visiting China online, connecting the past and modern" for Hong Kong and Macao youth. It builds a bridge of communication through the network, leading Hong Kong youth to better understand the history of Peking Opera, feel the cultural charm of the quintessence, and strengthen the interaction between Hong Kong, Macao and the mainland.

The art of Peking Opera is extensive and profound. There are countless characters on the Peking Opera stage, and each character's facial makeups has its own painting method. Facial makeups look colorful and varied, but they follow certain rules. The selected intangible cultural heritage project, painted Peking Opera makeups, was awarded the "Intangible Cultural Heritage Protection Project" by Beijing in 2009.

To enable Hong Kong teenagers to have a more detailed and clear understanding of Peking Opera facial makeups, this activity first showed the Auspicious Theater with a history of 100 years through a short video, and introduced the cloisonne enamel painting "Tongguang thirteen outstanding opera artists", the origin of the theater and the "Mei Lanfang School", and the stills of classic dramas. This activity invited Tong Xiufen, the representative inheritor of Beijing Opera facial makeup, a Beijing municipal intangible cultural heritage project, to vividly explain the technical characteristics of this intangible cultural heritage. The event also invited Zhang Zhun, a storyteller, as the host, to cooperate with Teacher Tong Xiufen to lead Hong Kong teenagers to experience and learn. The host first gave a general introduction to the painted Peking Opera facial makeups, including the history, origin and artistic characteristics of Peking Opera masks. In addition, a brief description and explanation of the characters with facial makeups are also given. The lecturer assisted the teacher in learning and asked Mr. Tong questions at the same time, which enhanced the interaction and interest in the learning process, and also helped Hong Kong teenagers master the essentials and details of drawing facial masks.

At the end of the activity, Teacher Tong Xiufen and the host also told Hong Kong teenagers about the materials for making facial makeups: "The face shape drawn today is the face shape of Mr. Li Shaochun, a famous Peking Opera performing artist. Mr. Li Shaochun enjoys a high reputation, especially the vivid role of Monkey King. I hope that through this activity, students can learn about Peking Opera, get close to Peking Opera and fall in love with it."

The "Cultural Tour of Beijing Opera" is a brand project planned by Beijing Overseas Cultural Exchange Center on the occasion of the bicentennial of the arrival of Huiban in Beijing in 2020.

Translator: SHI Meiling

Reviewer: ZHANG Ruochen