Beijing Dance Festival: Artists from around the world showcase contemporary performances

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The Beijing Dance festival is in full swing at the Tianqiao Performing Arts Center. Artists and dance troupes from around the world are showcasing the latest contemporary dance works in the Chinese capital. Our reporter Ding Siyue takes us there.

Over 300 artists, 200 dance students and 5,000 audience members have congregated in Bejing for this year's Beijing Dance Festival.

The two-week event is composed of two parts: an Educational Week followed by a Performance Week. There are three performance modules:

46 performances will be presented in this year's "Youth Dance Marathon", and they are selected from over 1,000 audition videos. It offers an open platform designed especially for young choreographer to showcase their original works.

ZHANG MIE DANCER & CHOREOGRAPHER "I participated in the Educational Week last year. And this year, for the first time, I brought my own work to this stage. I really appreciate this platform for allowing me to show my work to more people. On the other hand, I can also meet many other choreographers to communicate with and learn from."

DING SIYUE BEIJING "As one of the biggest celebrations of dance in China, the Beijing Dance Festival showcases some of the most intoxicating contemporary performances by troupes from all around the world. It is not only a place for young dancer and choreographers to showcase their talents, but also a tremendous platform for international exchanges."

Participants of the festival come from across China, as well as 15 other countries.

The annual Festival began in 2008 as a one-week event, with alternating focuses on international and Chinese artists each year. Since 2012, the festival has included both international and Chinese artists and expanded to its current two-week duration.

This year also features a forum by the China Dance Station, which is an alliance of independent modern groups. The alliance has extended to 40 cities across China.

Other cities in China, including Guangzhou and Chengdu also hold various activities in association with the Beijing Dance Festival, which runs until Sunday. DSY, CGTN, BJ.