Promotional materials for Panda the Musical Photo:Courtesy of Zhu Zhu

Panda the Musical, a new stage performance, kicked off in Chengdu, Southwest China's Sichuan Province on Thursday. The first panda-themed musical in China, the show makes an "unusual" venue its home - the Chengdu Research Base of Giant Panda Breeding.  

The musical features five panda characters who safeguard their planet. The panda heroes are wise, powerful, modest and optimistic, qualities celebrated in traditional Chinese culture, and exhibit Chinese confidence to the world through the art of theater. 

The "planet' in the musical is a metaphor for the country of China, the show's producer Li Dun noted, adding that the show aims to create a warm spiritual home for audiences to appreciate Chinese culture. 

Promotional materials for Panda the Musical Photo:Courtesy of Zhu Zhu

The newly launched musical piece embraces the "panda," one of China's most well-known cultural figures, through an art form that has wide influence in Western countries. The show is like a melting pot of Chinese culture that combines other intangible cultural heritages such as Sichuan Opera, Sichuan-style acrobatics and even hip-hop culture to provide audiences with a brand new experience. 

The venue at the research base also provides immersive experiences to audiences with world-class sound equipment such as "7.1 channel" speakers that are rarely used in traditional theaters.  

Besides China's well-known producer Li Dun, the panda musical was created through international cooperation with experts such as South Korea's top music composer Jang Soyoung.

Promotional materials for Panda the Musical Photo:Courtesy of Zhu Zhu