Chinese and French teenagers danced ＂Subject III＂ to win applause, and the cultural exchange atmosphere was active.
BEIJING, Beijing, Feb. 25 (Huang Fang) 2024 marks the 60th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between China and France and the year of Sino-French cultural tourism, and various forms of cultural exchange activities have been carried out one after another. On the evening of February 23rd, on the eve of the Lantern Festival, at the invitation of the Chinese People’s Association for Friendship with Foreign Countries (hereinafter referred to as the All-China Association for Friendship with Foreign Countries), 150 people, including the youth delegation of the EU-China Friendship Association (hereinafter referred to as the EU-China Friendship Association), the youth delegation of the French People’s Aid Association and the teachers and students of the China Theatre Academy, participated in the "Sino-French Friendship Night" party in Beijing to start the Sino-French Youth Friendly Exchange Week.
Before the event, Yang Wanming, president of the All-China Association for Friendship with Foreign Countries, sent an earnest message, expecting Chinese and French youths to become guardians of Sino-French friendship, practitioners of the "Sino-French spirit" and builders of the community of human destiny. "I hope that all young friends can make full use of this opportunity to start a friendship journey from meeting, accompanying and moving in opposite directions."
Famous performances of traditional Chinese operas, string-burning of classic French songs … You sing and I come on stage, and Chinese and French youths show their respective cultural styles in the cultural performances. The performance of national instrumental music and the chorus of famous sections of classic operas brought by the student representatives of China Opera Academy won applause from the audience. French teenagers were invited to interact with the Monkey King after the performance of the Peking Opera segment "Make a scene in Heaven".
French youth representatives from the French People’s Aid Association and the Europe-China Friendship Association presented programs such as singing classic French songs and reciting China’s ancient poems, which not only showed the French cultural heritage, but also showed their keen interest in China culture.
The pop dance "Subject III" performed by Chinese and French teenagers pushed the atmosphere of the whole party to a climax, and the audience stood up and applauded, cheering for the beautiful friendship between the two countries.
"The performance tonight is really wonderful!" Julien Villain, member of the National Committee of the French People’s Aid Association and head of this youth delegation, said. He thanked the China People’s Association for Friendship with Foreign Countries for its invitation, and said that the mission of the Association was to promote cross-border cultural exchanges. "We expect young people in France and China to communicate and experience each other’s cultures. At the same time, China friends are also welcome to come to France to watch the 2024 Olympic Games. "
After the performance, the organizers also prepared mini temple fair experience activities, and traditional folk activities such as painting faces and blowing sugar people attracted many French teenagers to watch. "I love China!" They said that although they have been in China for a short time, they have already felt the charm of China culture.
During the event, French youth shared their views on this event and their expectations for the relations between the two countries. Fatiha, a social worker of the National Committee of the French People’s Aid Association, said: "France will host the Olympic Games in 2024, and I hope that France and China will have more exchanges and cooperation in the field of sports." Pierre, a French youth, said that his major is economics and he hopes to contribute to the economic exchanges between France and China. "I also expect France and China to have more excellent cultural exchange activities, learn from each other’s cultures and make common progress."
"2024 is a very good opportunity for young people of the two countries to have more contacts. I believe that in the future, Sino-French cultural exchange activities will become more and more abundant. " Wang Kun, deputy dean of the School of French Studies at Beijing Foreign Studies University, said that opening the visa-free policy for France would give French youth more opportunities to come to China. As an educational scholar, he hopes that there will be more communication platforms to enhance mutual understanding between Chinese and French friends in various fields.
