Chinese Ambassador for the UK visits Leeds City Region

Ambassador Liu Xiaoming visited Leeds City Region to launch Shakespeare-Tang Project.

14 July 2020

His Excellency Ambassador Liu Xiaoming visited Leeds this week to support the launch of A Midsummer Night's DREAMING Under the Southern Bough, a contemporary adaptation of Shakespeare's 'A Midsummer Night's Dream' and Tang Xianzu's Nanke Ji.

The collaboration saw students from the University of Leeds and the University of International Business and Economics in Beijing take to the stage to perform the adaptation in celebration of both playwrights, who both died 400 years ago in 1616. The Shakespeare-Tang project was developed to celebrate this milestone and strengthen cultural links between China and the UK. Following the successful premiere in Leeds, the cast will now travel to Scotland to perform at the Edinburgh Fringe festival, before touring in China.

During his visit the Ambassador also gave a compelling speech, which focused on the 'three C's'; congratulations, confidence and collaboration. He used the opportunity to congratulate the audience on the wonderful city of Leeds, renowned for its financial centre and strong digital presence, as well as outline the confidence he has in the relationship between the UK and China, and finally, outline some of the exciting collaboration projects which are already underway.

 

His Excellency Ambassador Liu Xiaoming said: "This is my first visit to Leeds. But Leeds is no stranger to me. The beautiful city of Leeds is a cultural, financial and business centre in Northern England. I can't help remembering Leeds' sister city in China. Like Leeds, Hangzhou, the capital of China's Zhejiang Province, is known for its scenic beauty and cultural heritage. It is also hosting this year's G20 Summit. The University of Leeds is a world prestigious university with a long history. Today, over 8,000 international students including 2,000 Chinese students are studying here. This makes the University of Leeds a meeting place for different cultures." 

The Ambassador reiterated his ambition to develop stronger relationships with Leeds City Region, to see many more collaboration projects come to fruition, and develop deeper links between Leeds City Region and Chinese businesses.