Dancers from China performance palace music and dance of Han dynasty combining traditional and modern influences at the 2015 Chinese New Year Carnival on March 11 at the River Rock Theatre in Richmond, BC. [PHOTO BY George LIANG/FOR CHINA DAILY]

Blending Chinese and Western cultural styles was a recurring theme in the 2015 Chinese New Year Carnival.

The Canadian West Coast premiere of the carnival was held on March 11-12 at the River Rock Theatre in Richmond, British Columbia. More than 1,000 audience members were treated to a presentation of the traditional and cultural heritage of China by the China Broadcasting Performing Arts Troupe of Beijing.

Celebrating Spring on Five Continents was on its eighth Canadian tour. The programme included a Chinese folk orchestra, magicians, dancers, singers, acrobats and pop music.

The staging and costumes of the Chinese classical dances evoked the styles of ancient China. Music included Chinese folk music and Western classics such as the Hungarian Czardas dance.

The Xinjiang folk song, Why Are the Flowers So Red?, was performed as a duet between a Canadian cellist and a Chinese banhu fiddle player, Jiang Kemei.

Liu Ruoxi, a Chinese singer based in Vancouver, performed the pop song The South-Flying Geese”.

Audience members were especially dazzled by the gravity-defying, high-velocity performance of the acrobats, many of whom have trained a lifetime to perfect their skills.

"I love the show's many acrobats so much. It is unbelievable,"Dana Zhang, a student from the University of British Columbia, told China Daily after the show.

Chinese New Year is not a public holiday in Canada, so events like the New Year Carnival and the New Year Parade in Chinatown are opportunities for Vancouver locals to experience Chinese cultural traditions.

For Chinese students and the Chinese community abroad, these events also bring a taste of home.

"This show is full of happiness and warmth, which makes all the Chinese students studying here feel in China,"Zhang said.

The aim of the New Year Carnival is to showcase the modern face of ancient Chinese culture through artistry, international elements and contemporary interpretations.

The show's Canadian tour opened in Ottawa on Feb. 25, and also traveled to Montreal, Toronto, Winnipeg, Vancouver and Calgary, for a total of eight performances.

Made up of nearly 60 artists and entertainers, the China Broadcasting Performing Arts Troupe had been performing for more than 10 years worldwide, including the United States, Europe, Australia and Asia.

The mission of the troupe is to develop Chinese performing arts, introduce the essence of ancient artistic heritage of China, and strengthen relationships between China and Western countries.

The New Year Carnival was co-hosted by the Chinese Ministry of Culture and China's General Office of Broadcasting and Television.