Yudong Elementary School in Yudong, a town located in Haimen district, Nantong, has been dedicated to promoting traditional Peking Opera since 2011.

Boasting a long-standing tradition of Peking Opera, Yudong is home to many opera enthusiasts. Three years ago, Yudong Elementary School started employing former Nantong Peking Opera Theatre actor Li Pengshan and senior fan Shen Hongxia as Peking Opera instructors to offer courses and establish the Chufeng Children's Peking Opera Troupe.

Yudong Elementary School students practice for a Peking Opera performance. [Photo/Nantong Daily]

The school has designated Peking Opera-related activities as a special education project, promoting the art throughout the school to cultivate students' artistic talent.

The school also integrates Peking Opera with subjects such as music, Chinese language, art, physical education, and moral education, allowing students to experience the charm of the art form across various disciplines.

A resident poses for a photo with Yudong Elementary School students dressed in Peking Opera costumes. [Photo/Nantong Daily]

Under the guidance of their teachers, children from the Chufeng Children's Peking Opera Troupe have performed in the Nantong Children's Spring Festival Gala, and several students have been admitted to the Shanghai Theatre Academy and Yangzhou Theatre Academy.

Elements of Peking Opera can be seen throughout the Yudong Elementary School campus. The cultural corridor is adorned with photos of Peking Opera masters and interesting facts about the art form. In the classrooms, student-made Peking Opera masks hang from the walls. During recess, the school broadcast plays excerpts of performances by the young actors.