Photo: Tianshannet

The beauty of Xinjiang once again captivated the Chinese people after an eight-minute singing and dancing show staged at the Xinjiang Kashi sub-venue of 2024 China Central Television (CCTV) Spring Festival Gala, also known as chunwan, on Friday night. The performance unfolded through a diverse and colorful ethnic style, presenting a thriving and prosperous snapshot of Xinjiang to the audience. 

The Kashi sub-venue of the gala is situated next to the ancient city. Twelve dreamlike buildings with intersecting roofs float in the air, illuminated by dazzling lights, creating a magnificent stage that transports people into a fantasy world. China's Uygur actress Dilraba, singer Wang Hongwei, Yu Menglong and Uygur singer Air were among the star performers.

Kashi, a thousand-year-old ancient city, boasts the richest ethnic flavor and the deepest cultural heritage in Xinjiang. Combining natural and cultural landscapes, it is one of the most distinctive and attractive tourist destinations in the region. "Setting up a sub-venue in Kashi is an ideal choice for showcasing the image of Xinjiang and its abundant cultural and tourism resources," Li Meilan, director of chunwan's four sub-venues, was quoted as saying in a report by people.cn on Saturday. Kashi was the first branch venue selected. 

"We selected the roofs of 12 ancient city ordinary residences and built small stages on them. Dancers from different ethnic groups performed on these stages, dancing gracefully, just like vivid scenes of everyday life in the residences," Qin Zheng, chief director of the Kashi sub-venue, was quoted as saying in the people.cn report. 

"I feel honored to join the show in the Kashi sub-venue, to go back to my hometown! I hope my performance 'Dance and Music of Xinjiang' can provide a special taste of the ethnic singing and dancing from Xinjiang and help the audience enjoy a different kind of New Year. Xinjiang is a wonderful place, everyone is welcome!" Dilraba wrote in a post on Friday night after the show.  

Photo: xjtp.ts.cn

This marks the first time that a sub-venue of the CCTV Spring Festival Gala has been set up in southern Xinjiang. Analysts believe that this move demonstrates the government's confidence in the security situation in the region. 

"Establishing a sub-venue in southern Xinjiang demonstrated China's achievements in anti-terrorism and maintaining security in the Xinjiang region," Li Wei, a research fellow at the China Institute of Contemporary International Relations and an expert on counter-terrorism, told the Global Times. 

Li noted that previously, southern Xinjiang faced comparatively serious threats from terrorist elements, which even affected the normal functioning of local markets and the people's daily lives. 

However, with the effective measures and the comprehensive management of the Chinese government, terrorist activities have not been observed in the region for many years, reflecting a significant improvement in the local security environment, according to Li. 

Li said that the gala would display a real and objective view of southern Xinjiang to the world. "I believe most people in the world would like to know about the truth, but for those few media and politicians who refused to face reality, we cannot help them," he said. 

The beauty of Kashi also sparked discussion across China's social media platforms, with millions of netizens sending their best wishes to Xinjiang, hoping for its continuous improvement and broader recognition of its beauty after the show in the CCTV Spring Festival Gala.

The sub-venue in Xinjiang truly showcases the beautiful life of the people of Xinjiang to the world. It is lively, vibrant, and full of enthusiasm... Kashi portrayed by Western media is completely different from reality. Here, it is prosperous, lively, and filled with the essence of humanity. Various cultures blend harmoniously, young men are talented in singing and dancing, and the girls are as beautiful as flowers... Today's Xinjiang is the Xinjiang that the people of Xinjiang desire the most. It is advanced in civilization, has advanced technology, is both safe and harmonious. It is a paradise that many countries and regions dream of, a Weibo user commented. 

"I love this city more and more," Liu Xiaofeng, secretary general of tourist guides association of Kashi, was quoted as saying by the people.cn. Liu expressed her wish that after the gala, Kashi can develop faster and become even more beautiful. 

In addition to the thrilling song and dance performances, what impressed the audience the most was the extensive use of cutting-edge technology at the Kashi sub-venue, delivering a wonderful and stunning audiovisual experience. 

On the main stage of the Kashi sub-venue, there were more than 1,500 types of stage lighting fixtures. The lighting fixtures in the entire Kashi ancient city landscape exceeded 20,000 sets, making it the largest performance in Xinjiang. 

The directing team also revealed that a rehearsal system capable of simulating live broadcasting positions in real-time, combined with stage lighting effects, visual screen projection effects, and the arrangement of props on the stage, was employed to fully simulate and rehearse the presentation effects of the program on the stage, according to the regional government of Xinjiang.

The system is specifically customized for all the performances at the Kashi sub-venue due to the later sunset and lower nighttime temperature in Kashi compared to inland areas. The director's team chose to introduce this system to complete many program designs and preparations in the work area during the day through rehearsals, thus improving the efficiency of the creative rehearsal process.