Shijiazhuang, 24 July 2025 - The first qualifying tournament of 2025 "Golden Age Cup" National Senior Arts Performance, focusing on traditional opera, was held in Shijiazhuang, Hebei Province. The event, co-organised by the Seniors University of China (SUC) and China Education Television (CETV), was hosted by the Hebei Branch of SUC. FAN Xianrui, Vice President of the Open University of China (OUC) and SUC; LYU Xuewu, Deputy Director General of CETV; TIAN Xuebin, President of the SUC’s Hebei Branch; and relevant officials from the Hebei Provincial Department of Education attended the event.
OUC Vice President FAN Xianrui highlighted that the National Senior Education Achievements Performance has been successfully held for five consecutive years, attracting tens of thousands of works from thousands of institutions and over 100,000 participants. It has become a shining example of SUC's educational practice. She emphasised that SUC warmly welcomes seniors nationwide to actively participate in the performance activities. The university will continue to strengthen its system construction and work with its branches to draw a larger "circle of unity" for the development of senior education, contributing actively to the construction of a ubiquitous and accessible lifelong education system and the development of a leading country in education.
CETV Deputy Director General LYU Xuewu indicated that CETV will take this event as an opportunity to report extensively, enabling more people to understand senior education and take an interest in traditional opera. He also expressed his expectation of strengthening cooperation with SUC and related units to jointly promote the development of senior education and create more platforms for the elderly to showcase themselves and realise their value.
Hebei Branch President TIAN Xuebin said that as the first branch to host the "Golden Age Cup" qualifying tournament, the Hebei Branch felt a great sense of mission and responsibility. Adhering to the concept of "cultivating people through culture and connecting hearts through art", the branch had carefully planned and launched a series of distinctive activities, such as lectures by famous opera artists and cultural studies of the Yan-Zhao region. These efforts aimed to create an exchange platform for senior citizens across the country that combines both professional excellence and a warm human touch.
A total of 299 entries and 2,269 participants registered for the opera category of the qualifying tournament. On the day of the performance, 31 teams and more than a hundred opera enthusiasts over the age of 60 gathered in Shijiazhuang, showcasing ten major opera genres, including Peking Opera, Yue Opera, Kunqu Opera, and Ping Opera. After a rigorous expert-recommendation process, five outstanding works were selected to advance to the final performance.
The 2025 "Golden Age Cup" National Senior Arts Performance covers eight categories: vocal music, dance, musical instruments, traditional opera, recitation, fashion design and modelling, calligraphy, and traditional Chinese painting. It received nearly 90,00 entries from approximately 40,000 participants, with 1,291 works entering the qualifying tournaments. All the qualifying tournaments are scheduled to be completed by early September 2025.
Source：OUC WeChat Official Account