As the new year begins, the arts warm the capital. During the 2026 New Year's Day holiday (January 1-3, 2026), a total of 262 commercial performances across 731 shows have opened for ticket sales in Beijing. A gathering of classic melodies and innovative expressions, these rich and diverse performances will illuminate the holiday period, writing a brilliant opening chapter for the new year's cultural life. The new year's乐章奏响新篇, with renowned troupes and golden melodies celebrating the festival together in a cloud of New Year-themed concerts. As the gold standard of Beijing's New Year's Eve concerts, the 30th Beijing New Year's Concert (1996-2025) performed by the Beijing Symphony Orchestra will once again take the stage at the Great Hall of the People's ten-thousand-seat auditorium. The 4th Beijing Children's New Year's Concert – Night of Heavenly Horse Fantasy, and the Beijing New Year's Concert GALA – New Year Collector's Edition of "The Message" concert will also be held successively, offering audiences a special artistic gift for the year. The National Centre for the Performing Arts' Bell-Ringing New Year's Concert and the Bell-Ringing · "Triumphant Night" Beijing Concert Hall New Year's Concert will play the overture to the new year with classic pieces, conveying warm expectations. The "Harmony of Light Night" Golden Snake Brings Blessings, Steed Welcomes Spring – 2026 Opera New Year's Eve Gala resounds at the Chang'an Grand Theatre, gathering masters from five major operatic forms including Peking Opera and Kunqu Opera to celebrate the new year with traditional theatrical charm. The 2026 New Year's Concert and the 2026 Beijing New Year's Concert will be performed at the Beijing Arts Centre Concert Hall and the Zhongshan Park Music Hall respectively, expressing New Year's greetings through musical notes. The Vienna Radio Symphony Orchestra & Jérémie Rhorer New Year's Concert and the Bulgarian National Symphony Orchestra 2026 New Year's Concert will be staged at the National Centre for the Performing Arts Concert Hall and the Beijing Concert Hall respectively, bringing the "New Year's Sounds" of famous foreign orchestras. The Dragon Horse Strings and Songs · Splendid Movement – 2026 Beijing Chinese Orchestra New Year's Concert will be held at the Zhongshan Park Music Hall, showcasing the charm of traditional culture through ethnic music.
Newly premiered plays make a splendid debut, joining opening-year hits to embark on a new journey together. Multiple premiering works will make a spectacular appearance during the New Year's Day holiday, "welcoming the new" together with the audience. The Beijing People's Art Theatre brings two plays: "The Cherry Orchard," created jointly by domestic and international creators, interprets Chekhov's classic from a contemporary perspective, leading the audience to find a tranquil place deep in their hearts; "The Wayfarer" lands at the Beijing People's Art Theatre's small theatre, jointly examining a "human experiment" triggered by a traffic accident. The Beijing Opera and Dance Drama Theatre's musical story collection "Hello, Veteran" strings together military years with music, revisiting fervent glory through song and dance, paying tribute to the loyalty and dedication of soldiers. The China National Children's Art Theatre's fairy tale musical "The Nightingale," adapted from Andersen's only fairy tale with a Chinese background, conveys sincere and beautiful beliefs through Chinese aesthetics and melodious singing. The Beijing Children's Art Theatre's children's play "When Will the Moon Be Clear?," as a new work in the poetry series, brings spiritual healing to the audience through classic Song Dynasty lyrics by enacting stories of Song Dynasty poets.
Diverse performances ignite the new year, with quality masterpieces lighting up the capital. Large-scale performances shine on stage. Rene Liu's [Flying Day] 2025 Concert will be held at the Bloomage Biotech · RUNBAL Centre, stringing together healing golden oldies with youthful memories, accompanying the audience to bid farewell to the old and welcome the new in a grand chorus; the "Together for a Shared Future" Shougang Park New Year's Eve YEAH event features band performances, immersive DJ+MC interactive shows, countdown ceremonies, and other activities, heading to a "New Year's Eve date" together at the blessed site of the Winter Olympics. The drama stage is full of excellent plays. The play "Zhang Juzheng" brought by the Beijing People's Art Theatre is being performed at the Capital Theatre, the "Dream Like a Dream" Central China version is staged at the Beijing Arts Centre Opera House, and "Broken Gold" produced by Longma Club takes the stage at the Beijing Tianqiao Performing Arts Centre's Grand Theatre, allowing the charm of dramatic art to bloom on stage. Elegant opera melodies interpret classics. The Beijing Opera Theatre brings Peking Opera works such as "The Lucky Purse" and "Beauty Defies Tyranny" to the Chang'an Grand Theatre, the Northern Kunqu Opera Theatre performs the "Splendid Kunqu Rhymes" New Year's Concert at the Beijing People's Theatre, and the National Peking Opera Company stages national treasures like the Peking Operas "The Story of the Red Lantern" and "Taking Tiger Mountain by Strategy" at the National Centre for the Performing Arts' Drama Theatre. Dance dramas and musicals take the stage together. The dance "Birch Tribute" – 70th Anniversary Tour of the Russian National Moiseyev Dance Company will ascend the stage of the National Centre for the Performing Arts' Opera House, and the Russian State Ballet's "Swan Lake" is performed at the Tianqiao Theatre; the musicals "Daddy Long Legs" Chinese version and "Waiting for Your Love" are performed at the Chaoyang Theatre and the Xiaoke Theatre respectively.
New spaces offer joyful artistic fun, with a continuous run of good plays celebrating New Year's Day. During the New Year's Day holiday, municipal-level new performance spaces will host numerous shows. The Jixiang Theatre and the Zhengyici Theatre will perform the Peking Opera "Dragon and Phoenix Bring Prosperity" and "The Matchmaker," and the Kunqu Operas "The Jade Hairpin" and "The Mistaken Kite" respectively; the China Puppet Theatre Kaku Theatre and the Wukesong Ai Yue Hui Art Space Urban Theatre will stage the children's plays "Kaku Grand Plan: Legend of the Panda" and "Where is Chang'an?" respectively; the Yanliao Guild Hall, the繁星戏剧村, and the Happy Mahua A66 Theatre will bring the plays "Soong May-ling's Earring is Lost," "One Night, One Life," and "The Dinner Party of Stolen Hearts." A diverse array of excellent plays will take turns登场, inviting citizens and tourists to join a grand New Year's Day cultural feast.
Performance Images: The 30th Beijing New Year's Concert (1996-2025) – Beijing Symphony Orchestra Team Name: Beijing Symphony Orchestra Venue: Great Hall of the People, Ten-Thousand-Seat Auditorium
National Centre for the Performing Arts Bell-Ringing New Year's Concert Team Name: Central Ballet Symphony Orchestra Venue: National Centre for the Performing Arts Concert Hall
"Harmony of Light Night" Golden Snake Brings Blessings, Steed Welcomes Spring – 2026 Opera New Year's Eve Gala Organizers: Beijing Opera Theatre, Xijuan Tianxia Venue: Chang'an Grand Theatre
4th Beijing Children's New Year's Concert – Night of Heavenly Horse Fantasy Team Name: Beijing Symphony Orchestra Venue: Great Hall of the People, Ten-Thousand-Seat Auditorium
Beijing New Year's Concert GALA – "The Message" Concert New Year Collector's Edition Team Name: Beijing Symphony Orchestra, Beijing Musicians Association Chorus Venue: Great Hall of the People, Ten-Thousand-Seat Auditorium
Play "Zhang Juzheng" Team Name: Beijing People's Art Theatre Venue: Capital Theatre
Play "The Cherry Orchard" Team Name: Beijing People's Art Theatre Venue: Beijing International Theatre Centre · Cao Yu Theatre
Peking Opera "Beauty Defies Tyranny" Team Name: Beijing Opera Theatre Venue: Chang'an Grand Theatre
"Splendid Kunqu Rhymes" New Year's Concert Team Name: Northern Kunqu Opera Theatre Venue: Beijing People's Theatre
Children's Play "When Will the Moon Be Clear?" Team Name: Beijing Children's Art Theatre Venue: South Luogu Lane Theatre
"Birch Tribute" – 70th Anniversary Tour of the Russian National Moiseyev Dance Company Team Name: Russian National Moiseyev Dance Company Venue: National Centre for the Performing Arts Opera House
Rene Liu [Flying Day] 2025 Concert Venue: Bloomage Biotech · RUNBAL Centre
Comments