Shadow puppetry on stage in Tongwei county, in Dingxi city, Gansu province, on Oct 25 attracting many villagers.[Photo/xinhuanet.com]

Tongwei county, in Dingxi city, Gansu province, is known for shadow puppetry. And the Tongwei shadow puppetry is a combination of sophisticated local paper cutting and folk music, especially Shaanxi opera or Qinqiang, the  opera popular in North Chinese provinces such as Gansu.

An artist manipulates a shadow puppet behind the screen. [Photo/xinhuanet.com]

Shadow puppetry, also known as shadow play, is a traditional form of storytelling. The artists manipulate the flat figures (shadow puppets) to laugh, walk, and nod in front of the translucent screen or scrim, accompanied by folk songs and music.

The puppets can represent characters ranging from ancient officers and scholars to immortals and common people.

Liu Guotian performs shadow plays in Tongwei county, Dingxi city, Gansu province. [Photo/xinhuanet.com]

Tongwei's shadow puppetry music was included among the fourth batch of national intangible cultural heritage in 2014, approved by the State Council.

In order to develop and protect the shadow puppet-making, Dingxi city's government has held several shadow puppetry shows and the training sessions on making the puppets in recent years.

Edited by Andrew Ancheta