Cultural Fusion Event Blends Hit TV Drama and Traditional Qinqiang Opera at Huashan Mountain

A landmark cultural exchange event integrating popular film and television IP with intangible cultural heritage opera was successfully held at the North Peak of Huashan Mountain on May 27. Titled "Peak Elegance, Starring Huashan", the activity gathers renowned film and television creators and distinguished opera artists to explore the innovative inheritance of Yu-style Qinqiang, a traditional local opera heritage in Weinan, Shaanxi.

Supported by the online publicity office of Weinan Municipal Party Committee, the event is jointly hosted by Huashan Scenic Area Administration and Shaanxi Huashan Tourism Group Co., Ltd., with professional undertaking and artistic support from local cultural institutions and opera troupes. It capitalises on Huashan’s unique natural tourism resources and profound cultural heritage to build an immersive cultural experience model, empowering high-quality integrated development of culture and tourism in Weinan.

Driven by the phenomenal popularity of the TV drama The Protagonist, which brings national attention to Qinqiang art, the event unites the drama’s creative team, literary experts, inheritors of Yu-style Qinqiang and other intangible cultural heritage practitioners. It builds an open platform for artistic dialogue, enabling in-depth integration and mutual learning between contemporary film and television art and traditional opera culture.

The event kicks off with an intimate cultural salon, where creators and inheritors share behind-the-scenes production stories of the hit drama and discuss practical approaches to innovate and preserve Qinqiang heritage. Interactive sessions including Q&A and signature check-in break the conventional dissemination boundaries of traditional opera, making the time-honoured folk art more accessible to the public.

Following the salon, participating artists tour the North Peak of Huashan Mountain to appreciate the site’s spectacular natural scenery and millennia-old cultural accumulation. A series of immersive themed activities are launched against the mountain landscape. Classic Yu-style Qinqiang excerpts, exquisite traditional opera repertoires and intangible heritage performances including silk handkerchief skills are staged on site. Visitors can also experience real-scene restoration of classic drama clips and public opera teaching sessions.

The seamless combination of majestic mountain scenery and elegant opera charm allows tourists to experience the unique glamour of Shaanxi’s intangible cultural heritage during sightseeing. It realises organic integration of natural tourism and cultural edification, creating new scenarios for cultural tourism consumption.

The crossover integration of blockbuster television IP and time-honoured opera injects new vitality into Qinqiang heritage inheritance. It further enriches the cultural connotation of Huashan’s tourism brand, expands new development tracks for local cultural and tourism integration, and offers innovative ideas for the transformation and upgrading of regional cultural tourism industries.