Beijing Opera Company wrap up South American tour

Beijing's Peking Opera Company, one of the most respected of the genre in China, has just completed its first tour of South America.

Beijing's Peking Opera Company, one of the most respected of the genre in China, has just completed its first tour of South America. The troupe performed in several cities in Brazil and received a warm welcome from local audiences.

Peking opera is a quintessential part of Chinese culture. And now Brazilian audiences have been able to see the real thing for themselves at home. Artists from Beijing's Peking Opera Company have travelled to the South American country to share the 600-year old Chinese traditional art form.

Enthusiastic audiences packed into theatres to witness the show and seemed to enjoy what they saw.

"Peking Opera is such a fascinating art form. I like how the performers sing, it's such a unique sound. Also, the set is simple but conveys a strong message."

This is the first time the company have been to South America and saw them play in some of Brazil's major cities, including Rio de Janeiro and Sao Paulo.

The reception they received was surprising to some of the performers.

Li Enjie, President of Beijing Peking Opera Company, said, "A lot of people in the audience have never been to China and they don't know much about our country. I think Peking Opera is a good start for them to find out more about Chinese culture. So I'm glad that so many of them have come to the performances."

Hot on the heels of the tour's success, the company are now planning to take their performance to more countries in South America.