National Center for the Performing Arts (NCPA) spokespersons briefed the media June 4 on the upcoming Olympic performance season to be presented by the NCPA. China.org.cn presented live coverage of the press conference. [Webcast]

The landmark of the Olympic city, the National Centre for the Performing Arts (NCPA), impresses everyone with its massive scale.

Located at the west side of Tian'an men Square and nested on a 40,000 square meter artificial lake, the NCPA contains four distinctive and stand-alone auditoria -- an opera house, a concert hall, a theatre and an experimental theatre which is under construction.

Since the curtains parted on its debut, the unique architecture and art performance have attracted the world's attention, leaving an indelible impact on culture both within and outside of China.

The Olympic Games, a world celebration, is fast approaching. Billions of people will focus on Beijing in August and witness the global classic sport festival. Following the concept of "People's Olympics", the NCPA, as the state level performance art center, planned the Olympic Performance Season to highlight rich culture connotation of modern Olympics. The NCPA will showcase the national culture and serve as a platform for international cultural communication thus deepening friendship and understanding through cultural and art exchange.

The current Performance season will last for five months - from April 15, 2008 to September 21, 2008 with 135 plays and 279 art performances in 160 days, presenting a cultural festival that encompasses 480,000 people. 48% are international shows, including

• Ballets by Ballet de L'Opera National de Paris and the Royal Ballet

• Aida by Cairo Opera House

• Concert by Anne-Sophie Mutter and Trondheim Soloists

• The King's Singers Concert and

• Rotterdam Philharmonic Orchestra, etc

The remaining 52% of the shows are domestic, including

• The 1st Spring Symphony in China

• Dynasty 1900 by National Theatre Company of China

• Shi Wu Guan （Fifteen Strings of Coins）by Shanghai Kunju Opera and

• Butterfly Lovers by Hangzhou Yueju Opera Troupe,etc

More than 200 art educational events will be organized during the season to provide opportunities for 100,000 people to communicate with artists and get to know art.

(china.org.cn June 4, 2008)