Performers show off the traditional costumes of Gaoqiang Opera in Songyang county, Lishui. [Photo/WeChat account: ls-mnews]

The special class for Songyang Gaoqiang Opera at the Zhejiang Vocational Academy of Art – located in Hangzhou, capital of East China's Zhejiang province – welcomed its first 15 students on Sept 6.

The class was especially designed by Songyang county in Lishui city in Zhejiang. The goal is to promote the inheritance and development of Gaoqiang Opera, a national intangible cultural heritage item.

Goaqiang Opera, known as the "living fossil of Chinese opera", is currently the only national intangible heritage project in Songyang and is one of the oldest existing opera types in Zhejiang province.

In order to infuse new energy into traditional opera, Songyang has signed strategic cooperation framework agreements with the Zhejiang Vocational Academy of Art and the Zhejiang Wuju Opera Art Institute.

It has undertaken exchange activities with the Zhejiang Conservatory of Music, Jinhua Art School and similar institutes in Zhejiang.

The county has also focused on the integrated development of culture and tourism. It has established an intangible cultural heritage museum, which has reportedly become an important platform to speak out for Gaoqiang Opera and has also become a new landmark of Songyang's nighttime economy.

In addition, Songyang is encouraging restaurants and catering, homestays, hotels and other tourism-related enterprises to integrate the culture of Gaoqiang Opera into their business.