When the soft singing of Wu dialect travels through a century of wind and rain, and the melody of Hu Opera blends into the daily life of Shanghai, this local art born on both sides of the Huangpu River is not only the “sound business card” of Shanghai, but also embarked on the road of applying for national intangible cultural heritage (ICH) in 2006. Finally, it became the only local opera genre in Shanghai selected into the first batch of National Intangible Cultural Heritage Representative Projects, engraving an important mark of Shanghai’s ICH Culture. The road of Hu Opera’s ICH application is a history of inheritance and innovation. Starting from folk ballads in the fields, it evolved through “duizi opera” (two-person opera) and “Shenqu” (Shanghai opera), and finally got its name “Hu Opera”. With the persistence of generations of artists, it has retained its local charm while keeping pace with the times, becoming an important carrier of Jiangnan culture and Shanghai’s spirit.
For foreign visitors, exploring the venues, exhibits and marks related to Hu Opera’s ICH application can not only immerse themselves in the artistic charm of Hu Opera, but also understand the original intention of Shanghai’s ICH protection, appreciate the unique style of the integration of traditional Chinese Culture and urban culture, and start an ICH journey with both artistic edification and cultural exploration.
To understand the road of Hu Opera’s ICH application, the first choice is the Shanghai Hu Opera House — it is not only the core of Hu Opera art inheritance, but also the core leading unit and main position for Hu Opera’s application for national ICH, carrying the key marks of Hu Opera’s ICH application. Located at 57 South Maoming Road, Huangpu District, adjacent to the Huaihai Road business district, the Shanghai Hu Opera House has convenient transportation. The surrounding area combines the style of old Shanghai with modern urban vitality, making it very suitable for foreign visitors to visit on the way. As the core support for Hu Opera’s ICH application, the Shanghai Hu Opera House systematically sorted out the development context, classic plays, artistic characteristics and inheritance status of Hu Opera during the application process, and sorted out a large number of precious music scores, props, costumes and video materials, laying a solid foundation for the success of the ICH application. Today, most of these precious collections related to the ICH application are displayed in the Hu Opera Museum in the theater for Chinese and foreign visitors to visit and appreciate.
There is a special “Hu Opera ICH Application Theme Exhibition Area” in the Hu Opera Museum, which can be called the “memory treasure house” of Hu Opera’s ICH application. Every exhibit carries important stories on the road of ICH application. The exhibition area displays the reprint of Hu Opera’s ICH application form, the documents on the development history of Hu Opera sorted out during the application process, the singing albums and performance videos recorded by artists for the ICH application, as well as the precious photos and commemorative exhibits when the ICH application was successful, comprehensively showing the complete process of Hu Opera from application preparation, data sorting, expert review to final selection.
Among them, the most worthy of attention for foreign visitors are the core supporting materials submitted by Hu Opera for the ICH application — including the reprints of the original scripts of Hu Opera’s classic plays such as “Meeting at the Nunnery” and “Pearl Tower”, the performance costumes and props of Hu Opera’s representative inheritors such as Ding Shi’e and Mao Shanyu, and the video documentaries recording the evolution of Hu Opera from field ballads to a mature opera genre. These materials not only witness the artistic value of Hu Opera, but also highlight its core competitiveness in applying for ICH.
To help foreign visitors better understand the significance and process of Hu Opera’s ICH application, the Hu Opera Museum is equipped with English audio guides and detailed English explanation boards, and the staff can also provide basic English consulting services. Every Saturday afternoon, the theater also holds a “Hu Opera ICH Application Theme Lecture” in both Chinese and English by professional commentators, which details the background, process, difficulties and successful significance of Hu Opera’s ICH application. Combined with the exhibits in the exhibition area, foreign visitors can clearly understand why Hu Opera was selected as a national ICH and the important impact of the successful ICH application on the inheritance and development of Hu Opera.
In addition, during the “Hu Opera Open Day” activities regularly held by the theater (the last Sunday of each month), foreign visitors can not only visit the ICH application exhibition area of the Hu Opera Museum for free, but also watch the rehearsal of Hu Opera actors, communicate face-to-face with Hu Opera inheritors, listen to them talk about the persistence and stories during the process of Hu Opera’s ICH application, and even have the opportunity to learn simple Hu Opera singing, personally feel the artistic charm of Hu Opera, and deeply understand the original intention of “inheriting classics and guarding cultural heritage” behind Hu Opera’s ICH application.
The visit and experience arrangements of the Shanghai Hu Opera House balance professionalism and convenience. The Hu Opera Museum is open free of charge without appointment, and can be visited synchronously with the theater’s opening hours (the theater is open from 9:00 AM to 5:00 PM, closed every Monday, and will be extended to the end of the evening performance on performance days). Foreign visitors can check the specific time of the ICH application theme lecture through the official website of the Shanghai Hu Opera House in advance, or rent an English audio guide to visit the ICH application exhibition area independently, and deeply understand the historical significance and ICH value of each exhibit. The English information desk in the theater can provide thoughtful services such as detailed explanation of Hu Opera’s ICH application and recommendation of surrounding exploration routes. You can also buy cultural and creative products with the theme of Hu Opera’s ICH application, such as ICH application commemorative bookmarks, U disks of Hu Opera’s classic singing, and reprinted posters of ICH application exhibits, to take the memory of Hu Opera’s ICH application home.
In addition, the theater stages classic Hu Opera plays all year round. Among them, adapted and new plays such as “Thunderstorm” and “Deng Shuchang” are not only the core supporting plays for Hu Opera’s ICH application, but also representatives of Hu Opera’s artistic innovation. Some performances are equipped with English subtitles and English plot booklets. After visiting the ICH application exhibition area, foreign visitors can watch a Hu Opera performance to feel the artistic core and contemporary vitality that Hu Opera adheres to in its ICH application.
In addition to the Shanghai Hu Opera House, the Shanghai Opera Museum is another important position to systematically understand Hu Opera’s ICH application and Shanghai’s ICH Culture. It has a special exhibition hall for Hu Opera’s ICH application, which comprehensively sorts out the complete context of Hu Opera’s ICH application and supplements more details and precious materials in the process of Hu Opera’s ICH application. Located at 788 Huashan Road, Jing’an District, the Shanghai Opera Museum is the core venue in Shanghai to focus on displaying opera-related ICH culture. The special exhibition hall for Hu Opera’s ICH application in the museum comprehensively shows the preparation process of Hu Opera’s ICH application, expert review opinions, inheritance and development after the successful ICH application, and the connection between Hu Opera and other Shanghai ICH projects through various forms such as text, pictures, cultural relics, images and interactive experiences, allowing foreign visitors to not only understand Hu Opera’s ICH application, but also fully feel the ecological environment of Shanghai’s ICH culture.
The Hu Opera ICH application exhibition hall of the Shanghai Opera Museum displays many ICH application-related exhibits not shown in the Shanghai Hu Opera House, including copies of expert review records when Hu Opera applied for ICH, singing recordings of early Hu Opera artists, performance posters and programs of Hu Opera in different periods, as well as precious video materials of various inheritance activities and exchange performances held after Hu Opera’s successful ICH application. The English explanation system in the exhibition hall is very complete. Every exhibit and every introduction is accompanied by English translation, and some interactive experience areas are also equipped with English operation guidelines. Through the touch screen, foreign visitors can check the timeline of Hu Opera’s ICH application, listen to classic singing clips when Hu Opera applied for ICH, understand the stories of Hu Opera inheritors, and immerse themselves in the hardships and joys of Hu Opera’s ICH application. The museum is open from 9:00 AM to 5:00 PM (last entry at 4:30 PM), closed every Monday, and admission is free. You can make an appointment to enter through the official WeChat public account in advance. After the visit, you can also buy souvenirs related to Hu Opera’s ICH application and Shanghai’s opera ICH in the cultural and creative area of the museum to enrich your exploration experience.
To feel the inheritance vitality of Hu Opera after its successful ICH application, the North Bund Sub-district Community Cultural Activity Center is also a must-visit check-in place. This cultural venue, located at 99 Tongzhou Road, Hongkou District and officially opened in February 2026, is not the core position of Hu Opera’s ICH application, but carries the grass-roots inheritance marks after Hu Opera’s successful ICH application, and is an important window for Hu Opera’s ICH culture to “enter the people and get close to the masses”. The “Starry Sky Theater” on the first floor of the venue often holds public welfare Hu Opera performances, many of which are classic excerpts of Hu Opera when it applied for ICH, co-performed by community Hu Opera Teams and young actors from the Shanghai Hu Opera House. It not only retains the local charm of Hu Opera, but also integrates modern interpretation forms, vividly showing the inheritance and development vitality of Hu Opera at the grass-roots level after its successful ICH application, and also allowing foreign visitors to see that Hu Opera is not an art kept in a high cabinet, but a part of citizens’ daily life.
Hu Opera performances at the North Bund Sub-district Community Cultural Activity Center are mostly arranged on weekend afternoons, with each performance lasting about 90 minutes. Simple English subtitle prompts are provided on site, and staff will patiently explain the connection between the plays and Hu Opera’s ICH application to foreign visitors, helping them understand why these classic plays can become the core supporting evidence for Hu Opera’s ICH application. The venue is conveniently located, accessible by Metro Line 10 to North Sichuan Road Station, then a 10-minute walk. There are also attractions such as the North Bund Riverside Trail and old Shanghai lanes nearby. After watching Hu Opera performances and feeling the inheritance vitality after the ICH application, foreign visitors can stroll along the riverside, visit the lanes, feel the urban customs of old Shanghai and the vitality of modern Shanghai, and fully appreciate the cultural heritage of Shanghai. In addition, the venue regularly holds Hu Opera experience activities, inviting foreign visitors to learn simple Hu Opera singing and movements, experience wearing Hu Opera costumes, personally feel the fun of Hu Opera art, and deeply understand the ICH concept of “living inheritance and endless life” after Hu Opera’s successful ICH application.
Finally, here are some practical tips for foreign visitors related to Hu Opera’s ICH application to help you better start this ICH exploration journey. First, venue reservation and opening hours: the Hu Opera Museum of Shanghai Hu Opera House does not require an appointment; the Shanghai Opera Museum requires an appointment 1 day in advance through the official WeChat public account; the North Bund Sub-district Community Cultural Activity Center does not require an appointment. All three are closed every Monday. It is recommended to check the official announcement in advance to confirm the opening hours. Second, language assistance: core venues are equipped with English audio guides, English explanation boards and English consulting services. The Hu Opera ICH application theme lecture provides bilingual explanation, which can be consulted and reserved in advance. Third, exhibit viewing: the exhibits related to Hu Opera’s ICH application in the venue (especially ancient books, music scores and costumes) are precious cultural relics. Do not touch or take photos, and respect the cultural relic protection regulations. Fourth, transportation and dressing: most core venues are located in the city center, accessible by metro. It is recommended to wear comfortable and decent clothes, which are convenient for travel and in line with the venue visit etiquette. Fifth, surrounding experiences: after the visit, you can taste Shanghai’s characteristic snacks such as shengjian bao (pan-fried buns) and xiaolong bao (sTeamed dumplings) around the venue, visit old Shanghai lanes, feel the warmth of Shanghai, or go to cultural venues such as Minhang District Mass Art Museum to appreciate the fine works of Shanghai-style folk art including Hu Opera, enriching your ICH exploration experience.
The road of Hu Opera’s ICH application is a road of persistence and innovation, and even more a road of cultural inheritance. From field ballads to national ICH, from obscurity to going global, Hu Opera tells the century-old stories of Shanghai with melodious singing, and shows the humanistic customs of Jiangnan with vivid plots. The marks of ICH application scattered in venues and exhibits witness the value and glory of this local art. For foreign visitors, walking into these venues carrying the marks of Hu Opera’s ICH application, listening to the melodious singing of Hu Opera, and reading the stories behind the ICH application can not only appreciate the artistic charm of Hu Opera, but also understand Shanghai’s spirit of “embracing all rivers and being inclusive”, and feel the original intention and power of China’s ICH protection. With a sense of curiosity and awe, walk into the venues related to Hu Opera’s ICH application in Shanghai, and start an ICH exploration journey in the melodious Wu dialect, letting the charm of Hu Opera and the glory of the ICH application become the most unforgettable cultural memory of your trip to Shanghai.
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