China's 2026 Mid-Autumn Festival Gala to air globally

The China Media Group's 2026 Mid-Autumn Festival Gala will be broadcast globally at 8 p.m. Beijing Time on Friday, bringing the annual celebration to audiences around the world.

This year's gala continues to draw on the aesthetics of traditional Chinese culture, integrating the country's cultural heritage and the spirit of the times into its performances.

2026 marks the 20th anniversary of the inclusion of the Mid-Autumn Festival in China's first national list of intangible cultural heritage. The gala will center on the cultural significance of the Mid-Autumn moon and feature traditional art forms including Huagudeng folk dance, shadow puppetry and tofu banquets, presented in more interactive and contemporary ways.

The gala also highlights several major milestones in 2026, including the first year of China's 15th Five-Year Plan (2026–2030), the 105th anniversary of the founding of the Communist Party of China, the 90th anniversary of the victory of the Red Army's Long March and the 70th anniversary of the founding of China's space program.

Technology will also play a prominent role. The gala will extend its stage into the sky, with 8,000 drones forming images of major Chinese engineering achievements during some performances. 

AI-generated content will also be incorporated into the programs, while AI technology will bring historical photographs to life.

The gala will also feature international collaborations. British singer Sarah Brightman and Chinese singer Zhou Shen will perform The Music of the Night from musical The Phantom of the Opera together. Chinese pipa player Fang Jinlong, Croatian cellist Ana Rucner and German pianist Oskar Roman Jezior will also perform a musical dialogue combining Chinese and Western instruments.