Discover the best things to do in Beijing with our weekly roundup of art and exhibitions, music, performances and trending activities around town. To recommend an upcoming event or activity, please contact li-ping@chinadaily.com.cn.
A foreign visitor stands in front of a robot artist before it draws his portrait at an interactive zone at the National Museum of China on Nov 19, 2018. [Photo by Li Ping/chinadaily.com.cn]
Reform and opening-up 40 years on
A major exhibition is underway at the National Museum of China commemorating the 40th anniversary of China's reform and opening-up. Through historical photos, documents, videos, miniature models and interactive devices, the exhibition presents the country's major achievements and changes in people's lives since reform and opening-up began in 1978.
The exhibition also highlights high-tech devices such as robots that paint portraits for visitors and robots that make coffee.
If you go: 8:30 am to 6 pm (entry closed at 4:30 pm). National Museum of China, 16 East Chang'an Avenue, Dongcheng district. 010-6511-6188. Tickets: Free
The actresses and actors of a new musical version of
Gone With the Wind talk about the production at a Beijing news conference on Nov 1. [Photo provided to China Daily]
Beijing prepares to be blown away by US Civil War classic
The world premiere of an English-language musical version ofGone With the Wind is expected to land in Beijing on Nov 30.
Based on the original French version of the musical, entitled Autant emporte le Vent, in which both lyrics and music were written by the French musical writer Gerard Presgurvic and which premiered in Paris in 2003, the new musical version is a collaboration between the composer Presgurvic and the Beijing-based company Joyway.
Set against the backdrop of the American Civil War in the 1860s, the musical follows the life changes of the main characters, Scarlett O'Hara and her lover Rhett Butler.
If you go: 7:30 pm, Nov 30 - Dec 9 (no performance on Dec 3); 2:30 pm, Dec 1/2; 2 pm, Dec 8/9. Beijing Exhibition Center Theater, 135 Xizhimen Waidajie, Xicheng district. 010-6835 1383/5796 0183 Tickets: 180 - 1,080 yuan ($25-155)
[Photo provided to chinadaily.com.cn]
Let the creativity flow
What makes Berlin, a startup hub of Europe, so special? Some 100 influencers from Beijing's tech and creative sectors will gather at CHAO hotel in Beijing next Friday to discover Berlin's creative atmosphere and entrepreneurial opportunities at a unique event featuring talks by German music producer and filmmaker Mark Reeder and entrepreneur Matthias Strobel, founder of MusicTech Germany.
People attending the event will also get the chance to taste Berlin-style street food and experience an electro party with DJ Pei.
The event is co-sponsored by the German Embassy in Beijing and Berlin Partner for Business and Technology.
If you go: 6:30 pm - 11 pm, Nov 30. CHAO Hotel, 4 Workers' Stadium East Road, Chaoyang district.
Conductor Antonio Pappano (right) leads the Orchestra dell'Accademia Nazionale di Santa Cecilia in a weeklong China tour through Nov 29. [Photo provided to China Daily]
Italian orchestra gives a taste of opera and symphony
Orchestra dell'Accademia Nazionale di Santa Cecilia, a Rome-based symphonic orchestra led by conductor Antonio Pappano, is offering Chinese audiences a mix of opera and symphony.
Santa Cecilia, founded in 1908, was the first Italian ensemble to dedicate itself to symphonic repertoire instead of opera. The orchestra began its weeklong Chinese tour in Hong Kong on Thursday, and will perform two concerts in Beijing next week on Tuesday and Wednesday.
The orchestra's repertoire comprises musical programs with strong emotional contrast: Russian composer Rachmaninoff's Piano Concerto No 3 and Beethoven's classical pieces.
If you go: 7:30 pm, Nov 27/28, Concert Hall, National Center for the Performing Arts, 2 West Chang'an Avenue, Xicheng district. 010 -6655-0000. Tickets: 180 - 880 yuan
[Photo/chncpa.org]
NCPA Opera Don Giovanni
From Molière, Byron, Pushkin, Alexandre Dumas to Merimee, the story of Don Giovanni came down in many European literary giants' writings for nearly 400 years. In 1787, Mozart wrote the opera Don Giovanni based on Lorenzo da Ponte's libretto, portraying a bold and romantic Don Giovanni who defies convention. Mozart created a lively dramatic atmosphere, and brought to life the characters of different classes, identities and personalities.
The National Center for the Performing Arts is staging its own production of Don Giovanni based on Mozart's version of the classic. Both Chinese and foreign singers with outstanding performances in Mozart's operas will gather together to present the unique charms of the composer's music.
If you go: 7 pm, Nov 27 - Dec 1. Opera House, National Center for the Performing Arts, 2 West Chang'an Avenue, Xicheng district. 010 -6655-0000. Tickets: 100 - 880 yuan
