It's a tradition in China for people to gather with their families to watch star-studded Spring Festival television galas.
With the festival falling on Jan 29 this year, one good choice is Henan Satellite TV's 2025 Spring Festival gala, which will air at 7:30 pm on Sunday on both Henan Satellite TV and the multimedia platform Elephant News.
"The theme revolves around deep-rooted family culture in China, and is infused with elements of traditional Henan culture," says the show's chief director Li Weijia.
A performance from the station's 2021 Spring Festival gala, Night Banquet in Tang Dynasty Palace, went viral on Chinese social media. Taking inspiration from Henan Museum's glazed pottery figurines, female performers dressed in Tang Dynasty (618-907) costumes and in traditional makeup danced elegantly.
The gala is part of Chinese Festivals, an annual series produced by Henan Broadcasting System, which has a reputation for being popular with the young.
The opening of this year's gala features a virtual band consisting of four three-dimensional animated human-like characters based on the weapons of the Four Heavenly Kings, whose statues are often seen at Buddhist temples.
Li Ziqi, one of the country's most popular influencers, will interact with artists at an intangible cultural heritage fair set against a picturesque Henan backdrop.
Another program will be of young celebrities performing pop songs with elements of quyi (a collection of storytelling, cross-talk and other spoken art forms) in tribute to the Majie Quyi fair, which has been celebrated for over 700 years.
The fair is held on the 13th day of the first month of the Chinese calendar in Majie village, Baofeng county, in Henan's Pingdingshan city.
Named a national intangible cultural heritage in 2006, it attracts folk artists from across the country, including those specializing in singing ballads and cross-talk.
Henan is known for its archaeological discoveries, including Yinxu Ruins and Erlitou site that are evidence of the early stages of Chinese civilization.
The gala will feature songs dedicated to bronze objects from the Erlitou site, which is believed to be a late capital of the Xia Dynasty (c.21st century-16th century BC), and to oracle bones excavated from the Shang Dynasty (c. 16th century-11th century BC) Yinxu Ruins.
"It's like an interaction between the present and the past in which young celebrities engage with ancient people," Li says. "These programs are likely to resonate with young audience members because of the modern design of the stage and visuals."
Another much-anticipated program will be a snake-themed dance by dancer-choreographer Yang Liping and her team, as 2025 is the Year of the Snake according to the Chinese zodiac.
"Henan's Spring Festival galas have successfully created an IP(intellectual property) series in recent years, combining traditional culture with modern technology and attracting the attention of younger viewers," says Wu Xinying, an audience member from Zhengzhou, Henan. "It's not only about giving traditional Chinese culture contemporary vitality, but also about boosting our national pride and cultural confidence."
