Actor performs a scene in which Tibetan King Songtsen Gampo marries Princess Wencheng of the Tang Dynasty (618-907) during a drama in Lhasa, Tibet autonomous region, on Sunday. [Photo by Li Xin/Xinhua]

The five-scene opera contains a dozen types of intangible cultural heritage and modern dance, which attracts young Tibetans.

Losang Danba, a 28-year-old actor in a local Tibetan opera troupe, applied for a part-time job at the theater. He has played eight roles in the show and earned more than 4,000 yuan a month.

"I not only display the typical Tibetan dance I've learned but also earn extra salary," he said.

Lu Wenjia, a tourist from Shanghai, remembered the Tibetan dance and clothes and said she also learned Tibetan history.

"The settings of the palace of Tang dynasty and Potala Palace are very impressive and grand," she said.

The show will probably be rearranged into an indoor opera and be staged in other places in China or even other countries, said He Ping, president of Usunhome Cultural Tourism, the company that runs the show.

As a sister opera of Princess Wencheng, the indoor opera Princess Jincheng, which tells the story of another Han princess marrying a Tibetan king, is in rehearsal and will open in June.