ISLAMABAD: The Embassy of China celebrated the Mid-Autumn Festival on Saturday with traditional music and dance performances at the Pakistan National Council of Arts (PNCA).

The China Cultural Centre in Pakistan had invited 19 artists from the Chengdu School of Culture and Art to perform at the event.

The celebrations coincided with the 70th anniversary of the founding of the People’s Republic of China.

Zhong Qiu Jie, also known as the Mid-Autumn Festival, is celebrated when the mood is believed to be the biggest and fullest. To the Chinese, a full moon is a symbol of prosperity, happiness and family reunions, the event organisers said.

The Mid-Autumn Festival has a history of more than 3,000 years, and has grown to become a major festival in China.

Saturday’s celebrations began with a folk music ensemble performing Colourful Clouds Chasing the Moon, Blooming Flowers, representing a joyous golden autumn. This was followed by a graceful and colourful dance featuring flowing sleeves from Sichuan opera.

After a solo performance by Yao Jia who sang Happy Rain on a Spring Night, which describes the longevity of mid-autumn, Song Siyi demonstrated tea art, which organisers described as a miracle in Chinese history.

These were followed by the Ermalamba, a dance specific to the Qiang, an ethnic group living in a harsh environment above the clouds. Wearing silver bells, the dancers revealed the rhythm and beat of the Qiang girls in the process of labour.

Taxila Odyssey linked the land with the past, Warhorses Galloping expressed the passionate and heroic feelings of the Chinese people, the poetic Bamboo Branch Song, the traditional Sichuan Chinese opera integrated into a puppet show, and the Sindhi Jhoomer dance to celebrate a good harvest were also featured in the two-hour event.

MNA Noreen Farooq Ibrahim, the chief guest, said that cultural events strengthen ties between the people of Pakistan and China and cultural diplomacy is an important pillar between the two countries.

“Promoting cultural ties is vital for promoting peace and stability in the region. Smart diplomacy is about bringing people together and harnessing energies. Cultural relations between Pakistan and China have a long history and the two nations have endeavoured to promote cultural relations and connections,” she said.

Published in Dawn, September 16th, 2019