Chongqing - Starting on February 21, the dance drama Tianxia Dazu or For an Eternal Homeland — The Stone Carvers' Legacy will embark on its first nationwide tour of 2025 in Southwest China's Chongqing, according to Friday's press conference. 

Tianxia Dazu will be staged in over 50 performances across cities such as Nanning, Hefei, Hangzhou, Suzhou, Nanchang, Shenzhen, Fuzhou, Xiamen, and Changsha in the first half of the year. The total number of performances for the year is expected to reach 100.

The stage photo of the dance drama Tianxia Dazu. (Photo/Tianxia Dazu)

Chongqing, a nationally recognized historical and cultural city, boasts a rich heritage and profound cultural significance. The Dazu Rock Carvings, located within the city, represent the pinnacle of world grotto art from the 9th to 13th centuries and are considered the last monumental masterpiece in the history of global grotto art. Listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1999, it remains Chongqing’s only world cultural heritage site. Tianxia Dazu brings this cultural treasure from the cliffs to the stage, breathing new life into the Dazu Rock Carvings and creating an innovative approach to cultural heritage promotion.

The stage photo of the dance drama Tianxia Dazu. (Photo/Tianxia Dazu)

Over two years, the original creative team developed the production behind the acclaimed dance drama Poetic Dance: The Journey of a Legendary Landscape Painting.

In 2025, Chongqing made history as a sub-venue for the CCTV Spring Festival Gala, capturing global attention with a stunning seven-minute New Year's Eve performance showcasing the city's forward-looking spirit. The most symbolic moment came during the midnight countdown, when hundreds of Kongming lanterns were released at the Dazu Rock Carvings, conveying millennia-old Eastern romanticism to audiences worldwide. This exposure significantly boosted global interest in the Dazu Rock Carvings.

Yan Bing, Director of the Chongqing Municipal Bureau of Radio and Television, stated that the nationwide tour of Tianxia Dazu centered around the cultural essence of the Dazu Rock Carvings, will continue the momentum generated by the Spring Festival Gala. This will ensure that the Dazu Rock Carvings remain a vibrant and celebrated cultural symbol in China and beyond.

At the press conference, Yang Ye, head of the CPC Dazu District Committee's Publicity Department, heartily invited people across the country to visit Dazu, experience the beauty of the rock carvings, and immerse themselves in the thousand-year-old cultural legacy.