Yo-Yo Ma (Left) and Amy Tan (Right)

American-Chinese writer Amy Tan, film director Joel Coen and cellist Yo-Yo Ma were only a few of the American cultural heavyweights who gathered in Beijing Thursday to open the first US-China Forum on the Arts and Culture at the National Center for the Performing Arts. The four-day event kicked off Wednesday night with a private dinner at the US embassy, prepared by panelist and organic-food advocate Alice Waters, and will run until November 19.

The program includes a range of performances, workshops and roundtables that bring together some of the most illustrious names in art, music, film, dance, photograph and food from both sides of the Pacific.

Co-hosts Asia Society's Center on US-China Relations, the Aspen Institute, and the Chinese People's Association for Friendship with Foreign Countries, billed the forum an unprecedented endeavor to bridge the cultural gap between China and the US.

"Much has been said about the politics of US-China relations these days, but the sharing of cultural and historical experiences is an area that deserves more attention," said Orville Schell, Arthur Ross Director of the Center on US China Relations, and the mastermind of the forum. "Being able to look into the worlds of our Chinese colleagues from so many points of the Chinese cultural compass will be an enormous pleasure. We hope it will provide a place of convergence rather than conflict," added Schell, an avid sinologist.

Organizers repeatedly stressed that the forum seeks to create new opportunities of cooperation and dialogue between American and Chinese artists. Schell said he hoped the forum would showcase an American "cultural vibrancy" based on "openness and spontaneity."

Cultural exchange as soft power

The glitzy event kicked off the same day that China reproached strengthened defense ties between US and Australia. It also came only a few weeks after the Chinese government announced a renewed focus on "cultural reform," with the goal to "improve the nation's ideological and moral qualities." Sino-US bilateral relations and China's state-controlled cultural policy might conflict with the forum's goal to "open a new chapter in Sino-US cultural exchange."

"China and the US are stuck with one another as the two greatest powers," said writer and reporter Mark Danner, suggesting that bigger issues like global warming cannot be solved without cooperation between the two countries.  "The trick is to look at the common interests and maximize what you can do with them in a way that is beneficial to both countries. I think in the quest to find commonality in order to solve problems, culture can maybe strengthen a common interest," he added.

The Forum is not bowing to Chinese cultural policy nor subverting it, explained dancer-turned-director Damian Woetzel. "Artists are problem-solvers. We're here to share and learn. The intention of artists is to use culture as individual expression, any idea that this can be controlled is a bit na?ve," added the director of Arts and Programs of the Aspen Institute.

Growing up in two worlds

In a lively discussion, Amy Tan and Yo-Yo Ma shared their personal experiences during a seminar entitled Growing Up in Two Worlds moderated by Schell. Tan recalled being pushed to develop a "Chinese character" while growing up in "American circumstances."

"My mother thought that if I'd practice the piano hard enough, I'd become a genius," said Tan, about the way her mother was influenced by American ideals. "On the other hand, she told me: 'don't kiss a boy, you won't be able to stop him, you'll get pregnant and have a baby and you'll end up dumping the baby in the garbage can,'" recalled Tan. Brought up in France and in the US, Yo-Yo Ma recalled: "I was expected to be obedient and a good musician. (…) But later on I realized that to be a good musician you need to have individual will."

American filmmaker Joel Coen took a laid-back approach toward copyright: "I think that America's copyright law is too rigid. Once something is out there, it's fair game to appropriate." However, he also noted: "But picking up a pencil doesn't make you a writer."

The line-up also includes writer Michael Pollan, painter Eric Fischl, documentary film producer David Fanning, Magnum photographer Susan Meiselas and restaurateur Alice Waters. Their Chinese counterparts feature artists Xu Bing and Liu Xiaodong, musicians Wu Tong and Chen Leiji, film director Lu Chuan and actor Liu Ye.

The event continues today and will culminate with two of its most anticipated events: Yo-Yo Ma's unscripted performance at the NCPA in collaboration with Memphis-born street dancer Charles "Lil' Buck" Riley and students from the China Central Conservatory of Music; and the pre-premiere screening of the "The Iron Lady," hosted by Meryl Streep, who plays Margaret Thatcher, who will also join Yo-Yo Ma in a reading.

For further information, please visit: www.asiasociety.org/uschinaforum