Tibetan Opera in Beijing

Yel Bumen Tibetan Opera Troupe which performed a Tibetan opera piece based on The Epic of King Gesar at Tianqiao Performing Arts Center in Beijing last month drew huge crowds.

The legend of King Gesar can be traced back to the 11th century. It tells how the king, sent by God, banishes demons, helps the weak and unifies tribes. The Epic of King Gesar was inscribed on the UNESCO list of world intangible cultural heritage in 2009 and has been passed down orally through singers, dancers and storytellers in Tibet.

Yel Bumen Tibetan Opera Troupe was founded in 2010 by Samdrop Lhom whose father Thalor is a national inheritor of Tibetan Opera. The troupe tour around Tibet and hold charity performances for the local people, making great efforts on preserving and promoting Tibetan Opera, which is known as a living embodiment of traditional culture in Tibet.

Tibetan Opera, a combination of various art forms such as singing, dancing, and storytelling. The troupe’s performance in the capital is a part of the ongoing 22nd Meet in Beijing International Arts Festival, one of the largest annual art events in Beijing.