Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
I
Entertainment and art
S
hanghai might be a hotbed of materialism but these days culture is
increasingly emphasized as a vital part of the city's appeal. Most
visitors take in an
acrobatics show
and perhaps an
opera
but
equally worthy of note are the flourishing
contemporary art
and
music
worlds, and international-standard
dance
and
drama
scenes.
Furthermore, a host of new and very impressive government-funded
arts
venues
have opened, from the lovely Oriental Arts Centre in Pudong (see
p.92) to the Duolun Museum of Modern Art in Hongkou (see p.95), and
there are ambitious plans for dozens more.
The
Shanghai Arts Festival
(
www.artsbird.com) is held from mid-
October to mid-November; though you'd be forgiven for not noticing it, arts
programming does much better during this period, with a lot of visiting shows.
W
Drama and dance
Most Shanghai
theatre
is light-hearted fare about the trials of urban dating
life, in Chinese of course, though some troupes occasionally put on shows in
English.
Dance
is popular, but it's almost always the conservative end of the
spectrum. If you're into modern dance, look out for the work of choreogra-
pher Jinxing, China's most high profile transsexual and one of the scene's few
innovators.
The big draws at the moment are imported big-hitting musicals and big-
name ballets - worth investigating as they are cheaper than they would be at
home. The city is even planning its own version of Broadway along Huashan
and Anfu Lu.
Information and tickets
For listings of big cultural spectaculars such as visiting ballet troupes check the
China Daily, but for the lowdown on punk gigs, underground art shows and the like
get an up-to-date expat magazine such as City Weekend or check the website
d
W
www.smartshanghai.com. The schedules of all the most popular venues can be
found on the websites of the Shanghai Cultural Information and Booking Centre
(
W
www.culture.sh.cn/english; reservations on
T
62172426) and China Ticket Online
(
W
shdx.piao.com.cn/en_piao;
T
63744968). At both, tickets can be booked over the
phone and delivered to your hotel or home (at no extra charge provided you book
more than three days before the performance). You can also buy tickets from the
booking centre behind the Westgate Mall on Nanjing Xi Lu, or at box offices. Few
venues have the facility to take credit card bookings.
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