[Photo from en.gotohz.com]

[Photo from en.gotohz.com]

The popular Chinese saying, “above is paradise, below is Hangzhou” perfectly demonstrates the characteristics of Hangzhou. Located in a subtropical zone with four distinct seasons, it has a favorable climate, fertile land, rich resources, and outstanding talents. This beautiful and serene city boasts one of the world's famous scenic tourist resorts — West Lake, a UNESCO World Heritage site.

The best way to appreciate this city’s culture and history in a short time is to watch one of its best musical dramas. Impression West Lake is in China’s top seven shows of its kind. It features local Hangzhou culture and unique charm of West Lake. It is world-famous for its dreamlike show and fantastic elegance.

Director

Zhang Yimou, Wang Chaoge and Fan Yue together co-direct Impression West Lake. Zhang Yimou is one of the best movie directors in China and directed the Beijing 2008 Olympic Games opening ceremonies. Impression West Lake is the third piece of the Impression series – the other two are Impression Liu Sanjie and Impression Lijiang River. It was initially shown in 2007 and remains a favorite.

Venue

Impression West Lake is performed at the Yue Lake Scenic Area. It stretches south to Zhaogong Causeway, north to Yue Lake Tower, west to Breeze-ruffled Lotus at Quyuan Garden and east to Su Causeway.

Features

Impression West Lake vividly presents the history and culture of West Lake by exploring the folklore and myths of Hangzhou and highlighting the best of them. Popular stories include the Legend of White Snake and Butterfly lovers.

Besides being a mingled and charming show of Hangzhou culture and history, Impression West Lake also highlights the area’s beautiful landscape. Using hills as stage background, the whole performance of Impression West Lake takes place on the water. Even more amazing is “the Rain of West Lake” which was recreated using high technology and brings out the natural charm of West Lake in the rain.

Impression West Lake has beautiful music. Kitaro Matsuri, a world-class Japanese musician, created the beautiful background music used during the show. Zhang Liangyin, a popular Chinese singer with a heavenly voice performs the theme song. All these bring the audience into the dreamlike environment of romantic Hangzhou.

Performance Time:

During Mar., Nov., Dec., the First Field starts from 19:15pm.

During April to Oct., the First Field starts from 19:45pm; the Second Field starts from 21:15pm.

Duration: Approx. 60 minutes.