As part of the cultural program, the Shanghai Grand Theatre presented the dance drama Lady White Snake. The production re?imagined a 1,000-year-old Chinese legend through the contemporary lens of transformation, identity and self-liberation.

Zhang Xiaoding, general manager of the Shanghai Grand Theatre, a key platform for promoting Shanghai's cultural presence on the global stage, called bringing the production to the festival a significant step.

"In the past, we've had deep collaborations with many artistic groups and artists from Europe and the United States, but Lady White Snake marks our first time presenting an original work based on a traditional Chinese story to international audiences. Through this contemporary interpretation, we hope to showcase the creative direction of Chinese performing arts," Zhang said.