Beijing's cultural calendar comes alive with the 2025 Grand Performances

The curtain rose on the 2025 Grand Performances in Beijing Seasonal Productions at the National Centre for the Performing Arts on Sept 30, with the Chinese opera Red Sorghum.

This highly anticipated project, with Nobel laureate Mo Yan taking on the scriptwriting and renowned composer Guo Wenjing creating the music, brought the iconic rural tale of love, war and resilience to new artistic heights by blending the powerful narrative with the grandeur and artistry of Chinese opera. The premiere of the opera was staged at the NCPA in Beijing on Sept 27 and ran until Oct 3.

The 2025 Grand Performances in Beijing Seasonal Productions will bring more than 80 performance troupes, with 117 productions to over 30 professional theaters and 20 new performance spaces in the capital during the following three months.

This year's program is organized into six major sections: Masterpieces, Traditional Chinese Opera, International Works, New Voices, New Spaces for Performances, and Campus Showcases — ensuring that art remains both diverse and accessible.

The festival also introduces immersive theater experiences, ultra-HD live screenings and other emerging performance formats designed to enhance cultural engagement among residents and visitors alike.

The festival gathers an impressive array of productions across more than 10 genres, including opera, drama, ballet and traditional Chinese opera. A defining feature of this year's season is the focus on new performance spaces, with 23 venues introduced across core business districts, cultural industrial parks, heritage buildings and commercial complexes — each offering a unique artistic experience.