Alicia Adams, vice-president for dance and international programming at the center, stands in front of a poster for the Chinese New Year Celebration. [Photo/China Daily]

“What we like about the Family Day is that it is more interactive, which promotes people-to-people exchange between China and US,” Adams said. “Children can have more direct and vivid experiences of Chinese culture.”

The Shenzhen Symphony Orchestra program will feature artists who have made their name internationally, such as Muhai Tang, the conductor, and Yuqiang Dai, the tenor.

“When we pick Chinese artists, we want to select those that can best represent Chinese culture,” Adams said. “Another reason in our consideration is what shows can attract more audience so that the Chinese culture can be better spread in the US through the Kennedy Center.

“The Kennedy Center has a long history presenting Chinese artists on our stages in all disciplines,” Adams said.

In 2014, the center invited a group from China to perform at the World Stage program.

“The show’s name was called the Green Snake. It has been performed on the Hong Kong Festival and the Beijing Festival,” Adams said.

“It attracted Chinese and American audiences because it is the contemporary work. I think our audiences are developing different tastes for Chinese music. Certainly for orchestra music, China has some of the best musicians in the world like the string musicians. Audiences just come to see them. We just had Lang Lang and Tang Dun, who are certainly attracting the audiences,” Adams said.

In 2011, the center presented China: The Art of a Nation, a month-long celebration of Chinese art, featuring music, dance, performances for children and visual art installations.

In 2005, the Kennedy Center presented a monthlong Festival of China. The festival featured four weeks of performances and exhibitions from 900 artists, including eight premieres and more than a dozen free events.