The 3rd "Meet in Beijing" Arts Festival, one of China's international arts galas, will be held from April 20 to May 31, sources from the Ministry of Culture (MOC)said in Beijing Wednesday.

The festival is co-sponsored by the MOC and China Performing Arts Agency (CPAA), with the aim of promoting international cultural exchanges.

The festival will include stage performances, cultural activities and exhibitions, and will feature 35 foreign and 10 national dance, ballet, orchestral, dramatic and opera groups.

According to CPAA, the festival will also feature the national arts of China, with a number of traditional and new artistic productions.

Concerts will be held in local parks using the theme "the Beijing 2008 Olympic Games" and the four major exhibitions will show folk arts from Russia, Congo, Slovenia, and Ukraine.

A website for the festival, www. meetingbeijing.org, has also been launched.

The annual artistic event has been held twice since 2000, and has attracted more than 100 artistic and exhibition groups, and has drawn audiences of more than 600,000.

(Xinhua News Agency February 27, 2002)