Chinese Folk Music Meets Martial Arts on Civic Theatre Stage

Folk music and martial arts will fuse on the Akron Civic Theatre stage Monday, April 18 at 7:15 p.m. when the "Wulin Hanyun" Martial Arts and Chinese Folk Music Troupe performs free to the public. The troupe's 26 members, five of whom are music professors from the Art College of Henan University and 17 of whom are martial arts teachers and students, are visiting The University of Akron's Confucius Institute.

"Our shared mission is to promote cultural exchanges between China and the United States," says Dr. Yang Lin, director of the UA Confucius Institute, which is supported by the Chinese Ministry of Education and dedicated to enhancing the understanding of the Chinese language and culture. At UA, course offerings range from Beginning and Intermediate Chinese to Chinese Culture through Film.

Sponsored by Hanban/Confucius Institute Headquarters and organized by the Education Department of Henan Province, the troupe is on a 15-day tour, performing and visiting Confucius Institutes nationwide. The Akron performance contains four sections:

Fascinating Wushu, Wushu and Chinese Folk Music, all the funs about Wushu and finally, Cultural Wushu. Masters of several instruments such as the pipa, dulcimer, erhu, guzheng and flute will give a grand performance of Chinese folk music. Masters of shaolin martial arts from Songshan Shaolin Martial Art Institute also will perform, using 18 types of weapons and animal imitation boxing to display the profoundness and diversity of Chinese martial arts. Most of the troupe members performed at the opening and closing ceremonies of 2008 Beijing Olympics and other grand performances.

Doors open at 6:15 p.m. at the Akron Civic Theatre, 182 S. Main St. For more details, call 330-972-2013.

Media contact: Denise Henry, 330-972-6477 or henryd@.uakron.edu.