Destinations: Beijing, Xi'an, Chengdu, Suzhou, Shanghai
China Opera & Music Study Tour: Peking Opera, Face-Changing & Kunqu (10 Days)
Chinese opera is not one art but a family of arts - and no two members look or sound alike. This 10-day journey samples the greatest of them in the cities where they were born. You begin in Beijing, where a hands-on Peking Opera session paints your face in the bold patterns of the stage, dresses you in embroidered robes, and teaches you the signature poses - before an evening performance by professionals. A day of traditional instruments follows: your first notes on the erhu, the guzheng or the bamboo flute, taught by musicians who play them daily. Then south to Xi'an, where the ancient art of shadow puppetry puts carved leather puppets and a miniature stage in your hands. A high-speed train carries you to Chengdu, for the theatrical miracle of Sichuan opera's face-changing (bian lian) - watched live, then attempted (and laughed about) in a workshop. The journey softens into elegance in Suzhou, the home of Kunqu opera - six hundred years old, UNESCO-listed, and performed in the lantern-lit courtyards of classical gardens. From the roar of the drums to the whisper of the Kunqu flute, this is China heard and performed the way its people love it.
Day 1 - Beijing Arrival Arrive at Beijing Capital International Airport. Evening welcome dinner with Peking duck, and a first stroll through the lantern-lit courtyards of the Qianmen area, where opera teahouses line the historic streets. Overnight in Beijing.
Day 2 - Beijing: Peking Opera from the Inside Morning: join a Peking Opera workshop with professional performers - your face is painted in the bold patterns of the tradition (red for loyalty, white for cunning, black for integrity - each colour a character), you try on the embroidered costumes and headdresses, and you practise the signature stage moves: the sleeve dance, the sword gestures, the dignified walk. Afternoon: free to explore the Forbidden City or the hutongs. Evening: watch a full Peking Opera performance at a historic theatre - understand now what your own moves meant, seen at full mastery. Overnight in Beijing.
Day 3 - Beijing: The Music of China Morning: a Chinese traditional instrument workshop - professional musicians introduce the instruments of the Chinese orchestra: the two-stringed erhu, the 21-string guzheng, the pipa lute and the bamboo dizi flute. You choose one, learn a simple melody, and play your first Chinese tune by the end of the session. Afternoon: visit the Temple of Heaven or wander the hutongs at leisure. Overnight in Beijing.
Day 4 - Beijing to Xi'an: The Ancient Capital Morning: take the high-speed rail to Xi'an (about 4.5–5 hours) or fly (about 2 hours). Afternoon: settle in and walk the City Wall at sunset, with the old town glowing below. Evening: explore the Muslim Quarter food streets. Overnight in Xi'an.
Day 5 - Xi'an: Shadow Puppetry & the Folk Stage A full day with one of China's most beautiful folk arts: the shadow puppetry (piying) tradition of the region. Meet master puppeteers, watch a performance of carved leather figures behind the illuminated screen - warriors, scholars and demons in silhouette — then carve your own puppet under their guidance and put on a mini show with your group behind a practice screen. Afternoon: optional visit to the Shaanxi History Museum or a quiet hour in a tea house with a pipa performance. Overnight in Xi'an.
Day 6 - Xi'an to Chengdu: The City of Face-Changing Morning: take the high-speed rail to Chengdu (about 3 hours). Afternoon: settle in and stroll the old lanes of Kuanzhai Alley, where Sichuan opera houses and tea houses crowd the courtyards. Evening: watch the legendary Sichuan opera face-changing (bian lian) live - masks flicking across the performer's face in a tenth of a second, to the crash of cymbals. Overnight in Chengdu.
Day 7 - Chengdu: The Art of the Mask & the Tea House Morning: a face-changing workshop - a Sichuan opera performer reveals the secrets the stage forbids: how the masks are stacked, wired and flicked, and how timing hides the mechanics. With guidance (and great fun), you attempt the basic techniques and learn the opera's characteristic poses. Afternoon: experience the true Chengdu rhythm - tea in a traditional tea house with a Sichuan opera excerpt and folk music, watching locals play cards and nap to the sound. Overnight in Chengdu.
Day 8 - Chengdu to Suzhou: South to the Garden City Morning: fly to Shanghai (about 3 hours), then take the 30-minute high-speed rail to Suzhou, or fly via connecting routes. Afternoon: arrive in the garden city and walk the canals and lanes of Pingjiang Road, where teahouses host nightly performances. Evening: your first taste of Kunqu opera or Suzhou pingtan storytelling in a canal-side hall. Overnight in Suzhou.
Day 9 - Suzhou: Kunqu - The Opera of a Thousand Years A full day devoted to Kunqu, the oldest surviving form of Chinese opera - six hundred years old, inscribed by UNESCO in 2001 as a masterpiece of oral heritage. Morning: visit the Kunqu Museum and a Kunqu academy to understand its language, its flute-accompanied arias and its poetic texts. Afternoon: a Kunqu appreciation workshop - learn the basic gestures, the fan movements and a line of a famous aria. Evening - the highlight: a lantern-lit Kunqu performance in a classical garden, where the water, the moon and the music merge. Overnight in Suzhou.
Day 10 - Suzhou to Shanghai: Departure Morning: a final canal-side stroll and last-minute silk or craft shopping. Midday: take the high-speed rail to Shanghai (about 30 minutes) for your international departure — or extend your journey with Shanghai's museums or a performance at the Shanghai Grand Theatre.
