Guangyan in Sichuan province celebrated Mid-Autumn Festival with a classic poetry recital on the evening of Sept 17.

The classic poetry recital evening in Guangyuan, Sichuan province [Photo provided to cngy.gov.cn]

Among those attending the event were literature and recital enthusiasts from the city's prose association and recitation artists association as well as members of Guangyuan Open University.

The evening began with a song inspired by Su Shi's Northern Song Dynasty (960-1127) poem The Midautumn Festival Tune: Prelude to Water Melody, before Che Hongmei, a member of the provincial writers association and the China Prose Association, delivered a moving recital.

"The orange half-moon ascends the mountain peak, and the hidden half evokes even greater anticipation," read Che to the audience.

In a poignant performance, Cai Hong, president of the Recitation Artists Association and vice-president of Guangyuan Open University, recited lines from A Moonlit Night on the Spring River by Tang Dynasty (618-907) poet Zhang Ruoxu, allowing the audience to share in the beauty of a moonlit spring river.

Searching for Li Bai, by renowned late writer Yu Guangzhong (1928-2017), and Twelve Topics of Lizhou: Huangze Temple by local writer Wang Qingrong were also recited.

The mid-autumn celebration, which allowed the audience a window into their cultural heritage, culminated with a moving collective rendition of the song The Moon Represents My Heart.