It is a great honor to return to Qianshan and attend the premiere of the immersive waterborne night-tour performance Lakebound Dreams: Xiao Qiao’s Wedding. As a practitioner who has long been devoted to Huangmei Opera, and as someone born and raised in Qianshan, I am delighted and full of anticipation to join everyone by Snow Lake for this major artistic occasion in my hometown.

First, I would like to express my sincere gratitude to the Municipal Party Committee, the Municipal People’s Government, and all leaders for their long-standing attention to and strong support for our local cultural initiatives and the innovative development of the cultural tourism industry. It is through government leadership and careful planning that a high-quality platform and favorable environment have been created for local artistic production, allowing this cultural tourism performance project to come to life.

At the same time, I would like to pay my highest respect to the creative team, the entire cast, and all behind-the-scenes staff. Every new production—from script development, musical design, and stage-art refinement to choreography, on-site integration, and live-setting presentation—requires enormous time and effort. Thank you for your wholehearted commitment, repeated refinement, and quiet perseverance, which have made this premiere possible.

I was born and raised in Qianshan. The profound historical heritage and beautiful mountains and waters of this land have always nourished the development of local artistic creation. After many years in the arts, I have deeply felt that traditional culture has enduring vitality, but it must also continually find ways to engage in dialogue with contemporary audiences.

The integration of culture and tourism provides an excellent path for bringing local humanistic stories out of books and into public view. We continue to explore new forms of stage expression, presenting historical themes and local culture through diverse artistic media, so that more people can see Qianshan and come to understand Qianshan.

Tonight, like every audience member here, I am filled with anticipation: anticipation for the creative team’s fresh interpretation of a classic story; for the vivid performances of a new generation of young artists; for the natural beauty of Snow Lake; and for the cultural atmosphere unique to our hometown and to beautiful Qianshan, created through the meeting of traditional and modern music.

Culture gives cultural tourism depth, while innovation gives culture new brilliance. I sincerely wish Lakebound Dreams: Xiao Qiao’s Wedding every success!

This is a speech delivered by Han Zaifen at the premiere ceremony of Lakebound Dreams: Xiao Qiao’s Wedding.

About Han Zaifen:
Han Zaifen is Chair of the Huangmei Opera Arts Committee of the China Theatre Association, President of the Anhui Zaifen Huangmei Opera Art Theatre, and a renowned Huangmei Opera performer. She also serves as Academic Dean of the Huangmei Opera Arts School at Anqing Normal University and as the first Artist-in-Residence at the University of Science and Technology of China. She has received the China Theatre Plum Blossom Award twice.