The fifth Zhangjiagang Yangtze River Area Drama Festival got off to a good start on Oct 28 in the city of Zhangjiagang, Jiangsu province. It is a part of the 2013 China (Zhangjiagang) Yangtze River Cultural and Arts Festival, which takes place from Oct 28-Nov 9.

A series of drama performances will make the drama festival a fabulous drama gala. During the opening ceremony, a special show was performed featuring different dramas in the Yangtze River area, like Wuxi Opera, Shaoxing Opera, Huangmei Opera, Sichuan Opera and Kunqu opera. The performance was given by the “Plum Blossom Prize” art troupe of the Chinese Dramatists Association.

During the festival, art troupes from seven provinces and cities, Shanghai, Jiangsu, Anhui, Jiangxi, Hunan, Chongqing and Yunnan, will perform classic dramas for theatre goers. All the shows originated in the Yangtze River area and depict the special drama culture of the region.

As parts of the drama festival, boutique operettas from the Yangtze River area will be performed in the communities of Guizhou, Sichuan, Qinghai and Hubei. The Jiangsu provincial Plum Blossom Art Troupe will give a performance for Zhangjiagang citizens to further promote drama culture in the Yangtze River area. Seminars on the prosperity of drama in the Yangtze River area will also be held during the festival.

This year’s festival will implement a new kind of operation mechanism for the first time. Tickets to the shows at the Zhangjiagang Polytheater are only 10 yuan ($1.64).