Aranya Theater Festival held in Qinhuangdao, north China

SHIJIAZHUANG, June 24 (Xinhua) -- Nearly 30 theatrical productions from 17 countries are being staged at the Aranya Theater Festival in the coastal city of Qinhuangdao in north China's Hebei Province, highlighting the country's commitment to international cultural exchanges.

More than 300 foreign theater artists are attending the festival, including directors from esteemed theater festivals in France, Austria, Japan, Australia, Greece, Egypt, Poland and Colombia, according to Meng Jinghui, artistic director of the festival who is also director of the National Theatre of China.

The 11-day-long festival opened on Thursday with "Drama," a production by the Volksbühne in Berlin that blends elements of cabaret, French revue, Spanish music, Italian humor and European farce.

The domestic opening work was "Blossoms," an adaptation of Jin Yucheng's novel, exploring social changes and individual destinies in 20th-century Shanghai.

The festival will also feature theater readings, theatrical competitions, seaside screenings, dialogues and exchanges, art exhibitions, theatrical parades and bonfire parties.

First held in June 2021, the Aranya Theater Festival aims to erase the boundaries of art with diverse, contemporary, open and inclusive expressions and forms. The theme of this year is "Exception and Rule."