City: Xian
Shaanxi shadow puppetry is a precious national intangible cultural heritage, with a history stretching back more than 1,000 years. This immersive workshop, hosted in the historic Gao Family Courtyard in Xi'an's Muslim Quarter, begins with a live shadow puppet show performed by veteran local folk artists. Behind the translucent screen, leather puppets move vividly to traditional folk music, telling classic Chinese folk legends. Our bilingual host explains the plot, character symbols and storytelling traditions in simple English, so international students can easily follow and appreciate the ancient folk art.
After the performance, the hands-on workshop starts. Students learn how traditional shadow puppets are cut from cowhide, coloured and assembled with control sticks. Each participant gets a blank leather puppet template to carve, paint and assemble. Once the puppets are finished, the group can go behind the screen to manipulate their own puppets and perform short, simple plays together. The folk master will teach basic puppet movement skills, and students can collaborate in small teams to put on their own mini shadow puppet performance.
PandaStudyTour fully manages all arrangements for this folk art experience. We book the historic Gao Family Courtyard venue, arrange experienced bilingual shadow puppet masters, and supply all leather, carving tools and painting materials. We can adjust the workshop complexity for different age groups, and optionally add Shaanxi paper-cutting or Qinqiang mask painting to extend the cultural session. This workshop can be embedded into your Xi'an study tour itinerary, school exchange or summer camp. It is a wonderful interactive activity that lets overseas students experience Chinese folk theatre and creative handicraft culture beyond textbook knowledge.
