From 5 to 16 December 2023, the Cultural Tour “Moving Forward Together” co-organized by the ASEAN-China Center (ACC) and China National Center for the Performing Arts (NCPA) was successfully held in Singapore and Malaysia. The Cultural Tour covered two NCPA productions Gianni Schicchi and A Story of Growing Up jointly performed by musicians and orchestras from Singapore, Malaysia and NCPA, drama film screening of Lin Zexu , as well as cultural exchange activities in art institutes and local communities. The above-mentioned activities are named under the ACC feature activity “Special Moment of Culture”.

In his welcoming note for the Cultural Tour, Secretary General Shi Zhongjun of the ACC underlined that Singapore, Malaysia and China have forged ahead hand in hand and contributed to each other’s successes. The interpretation of the classical and innovative artistic creations of NCPA will present the audience both in Singapore and Malaysia a high-level artistic feast. In the upcoming year 2024, designated as “ASEAN-China Year of People-to-people Exchanges”, the ACC will collaborate more actively with various organizations and practitioners to further initiate, sponsor and organize more cultural events to strengthen the mutual learning and deepen cultural and people-to-people bonds between ASEAN and China.

In Malaysia, the National Symphony Orchestra Malaysia and NCPA shared the stage and performed two NCPA opera productions Gianni Schicchi and A Story of Growing Up in two halves of one session at Istana Budaya. Before the premier Opera Show, distinguished guests from Malaysia and China attended the reception, including Secretary General YBhg. Dato' Roslan Tan Sri Abdul Rahman of the Ministry of Tourism, Arts and Culture of Malaysia (MOTAC) and Ambassador Ouyang Yujing of China to Malaysia, Cultural Counsellor Zhang Zhen of the Embassy of China in Malaysia. Director Hadi Tjahjono of Education, Culture and Tourism Division (ECTD) of the ACC addressed the event.

Apart from the opera shows, as another part of the Cultural Tour, the NCPA production drama film “Lin Zexu” was screened at the Chinese Cultural Center in Kuala Lumpur. Audience from various circles of life in Malaysia gathered together and got deeply touched by the lines. During the same period, the joint concert of NCPA and the Malaysian Institute of Art (MIA) was successfully held at the MIA.

In Singapore, the NCPA opera Gianni Schicchi made a stunning appearance first at the Esplanade. And under the cooperation among the Conductor Ye Cong, Metropolitan Festival Orchestra and NCPA, the classic Chinese fairy tale A Story of Growing Up was staged on the second evening. The performances aroused such an enthusiastic attention that the tickets were early sold out. In response to the audience's enthusiasm, an encore of the concert Rasa Sayange was performed after the opera show. In addition, the drama film “Lin Zexu” was also screened at the Chinese Cultural Centre in Singapore. Due to the overbooking of the audience, the Chinese Cultural Centre in Singapore added another screening to the original plan. During the same period, a series of cultural exchange activities were carried out by artists from NCPA in art institutes and local communities, such as a giant panda-themed music pop-up event jointly presented by Singaporean friends and NCPA at the Singapore River Safari, conveying the close friendship between Singaporean and Chinese peoples. 

Diversity spurs interaction among civilizations, which in turn promotes mutual learning and their further development. The Culture Tour was rich in forms and went from opera houses, cultural centers to art academies, which covers a wide range of people from art industry to art lovers and from young people to senior citizens. It would strengthen the bonds between the peoples from ASEAN and China, advance the mutual learning of both sides and enrich the comprehensive strategic partnership between ASEAN and China.