Dance festival featuring ethnic elements kicks off

A performance of the original Chinese dance drama In the Distance, Here, which incorporates elements from various ethnic dances, officially kicked off the 7th China Xinjiang International Dance Festival on Sunday in Urumqi, the capital of the Xinjiang Uygur autonomous region.

This year's festival, with the theme "Let's Dance Together", brings together 24 domestic and international art troupes, presenting 52 dance productions in 17 days across Xinjiang. The festival will run through Aug 5.

The performance of In the Distance, Here, featured Tong Liya, a renowned actress and dancer from Xinjiang, in the leading role, along with around 50 dancers of the Xinjiang Art Theater and the song and dance troupe of Karamay, an oil-rich city in northern Xinjiang.