Poster for the exhibition "The Centennial Exhibition of Shanghai Style Cheongsams" in France. [Photo/Chinaculture.org]

Happy Chinese New Year, a major cultural project initiated by the Ministry of Culture in 2009, has become an important event for overseas Chinese and Chinese culture aficionados around the world.

As Chinese Lunar New Year is increasingly known and valued by the French people, this year the China Culture Center in Paris plans to expand "Happy Chinese New Year" celebrations to other provinces outside of Paris to offer more French people a chance to experience Chinese culture. Let's check out the upcoming exciting activities.

Feb 7-10
A Wuju Opera troupe from East China's Yiwu city will present some classic operas including Monkey King: Borrowing Palm-Leaf Fan and Face-Changing at the China Culture Center in Paris and in Strasbourg.

Feb 8-28
An exhibition titled The Centennial Exhibition of Shanghai Style Cheongsams will be staged at the China Culture Center in Paris. The exhibition comprises over 50 exhibits including cheongsams of different styles and different times, which will demonstrate the long-standing Chinese cheongsam culture and the aesthetics of Shanghai people in the past.

Feb 10-11
The Chinese folk art performance, Pulling String Lion Dance, will be put on in China Culture Center and Courbevoie. The event features the traditional lion dance and dragon dance, the Chinese Southern Lion and Wuju Opera, a regional art form of Jinhua in Zhejiang province.

Jan 30-Feb 16
A photo exhibition on the Silk Road will be held at Sidney Bechet Cultural Center in Garches. Several years ago, a group of Chinese culture aficionados and peace lovers from the China Culture Center in Paris organized a journey to explore the Silk Road and took photos to record their travel. This exhibition can help visitors know more about the real Silk Road.

Feb 10
A Chinese Lunar New Year celebration will be held at the China Culture Center in Paris. To welcome the Year of the Dog, the center will invite locals to enjoy performances of lion dance and Wuju Opera.

Feb 5-Mar 1
A photo exhibition titled The Jiangxi in the Eyes of Foreigners will be held at the China Culture Center. East China's Jiangxi province is a region steeped in culture and natural beauty. These photos photographed by French artists will give French people a glimpse of the beautiful scenery and the cultural heritages of Jiangxi province.

Feb 17
A literature salon titled Poetry and the Night will be held at the Library of Jean-Pierre Melville. Visitors will enjoy the performances of traditional Chinese instruments and appreciate the beauty of the nights depicted in the ancient Chinese poems. Also the customs of the Chinese Lunar New Year will be introduced at the salon.

Feb 19-25
The China Culture Week will be held in Marseilles with a photography exhibition titled Transition and Chinese film screenings. As 2018 marks the 40th anniversary of China's reform and opening-up, the photo exhibition will showcase over 70 photos, portraying the lives of ordinary Chinese people and the changes in their lives over the past 40 years.

As a main part of the cultural and creative industries, films play a crucial part in the cultural exchanges between China and France. During the China Culture Week, classic Chinese films including Mountains May Depart and The Nightingale will be screened.

Feb 27
To celebrate the Lantern Festival, the China Culture Center will hold a show featuring liang shan diao, or Liangshan Opera, an intangible cultural heritage from Central China's Hubei province. The Liangshan Opera Troupe will stage an exciting performance and the artists will demonstrate the interesting facial makeup painting.