Art troupe performers from Hangzhou, Zhejiang province pose with officials from China and Chile after a cultural show in Vina del Mar, Chile on Jan 20. [Photo provided to ehangzhou.gov.cn]

An art troupe from Hangzhou, Zhejiang province put on a series of performances to celebrate the upcoming Chinese Lunar New Year in Vina del Mar, Chile on Jan 20, drawing to a conclusion the two-week performance tour of the South American country.

As a major event for the 2019 Chinese Lunar New Year celebrations in the country, the gala excited a local audience of around 8,000 people with Chinese music, dances, magic, and acrobatics.

Wang Meng, head of the Confucius Institute at the University of Saint Thomas, Chile, said that the celebration gala has evolved into a new brand for the Chinese New Year in Vina del Mar over the years.

Other than performances featuring Chinese traditional culture, an array of cultural experience activities including Chinese paper-cutting, calligraphy, facial painting, traditional costumes wearing were also available in the local area.

"We hope that our performances can give local people a taste of Chinese culture and specifically, Hangzhou culture," said Liu Haiyan, a performer from the troupe, adding that the acrobatics performances are particularly popular among Chilean audiences.

Happy Chinese New Year, a major cultural project initiated by the Ministry of Culture in 2009, is a worldwide activity for celebrating the Chinese Lunar New Year and has become an important event to introduce Chinese culture and bring the joys and auspicious significance of Chinese New Year to people throughout the world.