With songs to celebrate happy life and dances to express ambitions, the opening ceremony of the 6^th Minorities Art Festival of China was held in Beijing in the evening of August 31^st. Those watched the performance were heads of the nation including Xi Jinping, Li Keqiang, Wangyang and Wang Huning as well as about 3000 people.

    The Great Hall of the People was filled with bright light and laughter. At 20 o’clock, Xi Jinping arrived at the hall and was greeted with applause. The opening show “People of All Nationalities Follow the CPC” presented all ethnic groups’ wishes for the 100^th anniversary of the party and was the start of the opening ceremony named “A New Journey of Solidarity and Progress”. The gala was divided into three parts, namely, stepping on a new path, a new era of progress and embarking on a new journey. Poetry recitation accompanied by dance “Connected by Blood”, dance “Warm Sun in the Realm of Snow”, song “Years as Songs”, melodrama “Online Life in a Village”, song and dance of intangible cultural heritage “Bright Pearl Shines in China”, “Song of Happiness”, dance “A Long Voyage” and so on. Shows were with clear features of ethnic groups, various forms, thick characteristics of the era and amazing effect, all of which pushed the ceremony to the climax. The ceremony was an example presenting the strong leadership of the CPC Central Committee with Xi Jinping as it’s core; colorful and content-rich Chinese culture; solidified struggling of all ethnic groups and determination of Chinese to build a shared spiritual home for Chinese nation to follow the party and to embark on a new journey. Applause was heard every now and then. The ceremony ended with the spectacular song and dance called “This is Our Happy Home”.

    Before the show, heads of the CPC and China including Xi Jinping met and took pictures with representatives of performers of the ceremony, the organizing committee and the outstanding basic level party members of 56 nationalities.

    Attendees including Ding Xuexiang, Sun Chunlan, Zhang Youxia, Huang Kunming, Cai Qi, You Quan, Padma Choling, Xiao Jie, Ma Biao and Bateer.

    The 6^th Minorities Art Festival of China was organized by State Ethnic Affairs Commission, China’s Ministry of Culture and Tourism, National Radio and Television Administration, China Media Group and Beijing People’s Municipal Government. The performance lasted from August 31^st to September 24^th, during which 42 shows would be broadcast by CCTV.com and the website of National Ethnic Affairs Commission of the People's Republic of China.