News at the Two Sessions venue|She sang folk songs in the conference of the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference to “seek attention” two years ago, and this year she spoke again in front of the microphone

On January 16th, 2025, a special session of the 14th Session of the Shanghai Municipal Political Consultative Conference (SMPCC) focused on “deepening institutional reforms and building an international cultural metropolis” was held. (Photos: The Paper)

“This is not the first time I have raised my hand to speak,” a familiar voice said, it was Lu Jinhua, a Pingle performer from the Shanghai Pingle Troupe. People in the meeting hall smiled and even looked forward to her speech – this is a Shanghai Municipal Political Consultative Conference member who has been able to grab the microphone for three consecutive years. At a previous SMPCC special session two years ago, Lu Jinhua ended her speech with an unexpected live Pingle performance, which attracted everyone’s attention.

On the same day, at the same conference on “deepening institutional reforms and building an international cultural metropolis,” the reporter from The Paper (www.thepaper.cn) saw Lu Jinhua raise her hand for the third time.

At the SMPCC special session in 2023, Lu Jinhua raised her hand to share the difficult situation that although there were many Pingle actors in the Shanghai Pingle Troupe, there were not enough performances. As a Pingle actor, she ended her speech with a live Pingle song. After being “heard,” during the Shanghai Two Sessions that year, Lu Jinhua and the Shanghai Pingle Troupe received some resources, and many cultural venues in Shanghai actively sought them out. “Here, I would like to report that our Pingle performance market has become much more abundant, and the actors’ situation is getting better and better.” At the SMPCC special session in 2024, Lu Jinhua eagerly grabbed the microphone to report, express gratitude, and share new ideas and suggestions for the development of Shanghai’s non-heritage cultural aspects.

“I represent the vast Quyi workers. In previous years, when I spoke out about issues such as our young actors and the construction of talent pools, I mentioned many problems that were solved on the spot through on-the-spot solutions.” At the special session in 2025, Lu Jinhua said that now the Shanghai Pingle Troupe has a broader performance market, with limited supply meeting high demand in cultural tourism performances, theater performances, and online performances. There are also opportunities for national tours and overseas performances. “Many people may think that people outside Jiangnan may not understand local culture very well and wonder why everyone is so enthusiastic about Pingle? This is inseparable from the promotion of non-heritage cultural aspects in recent years.”

However, in Lu Jinhua’s view, there are still many non-heritage cultural aspects and practitioners who need to be seen by more people. “Shanghai’s cultural tourism industry is so prosperous, and there is a lot of room for non-heritage cultural aspects to develop and explore. However, many non-heritage practitioners may not be able to keep up with the times, so we desperately need people from all aspects to develop and transform them into various IPs.”

Lu Jinhua put forward her own ideas and suggested that Shanghai take advantage of urban renewal opportunities to create a non-heritage cultural tourism street, dividing Shanghai’s non-heritage cultural aspects into various categories such as food and daily use items, and promoting live applications in addition to displays. This would also help drive and boost cultural consumption. In terms of consumer groups, Lu Jinhua suggested developing performances, venues, and cultural tourism projects tailored for middle-aged and elderly consumer groups that cater to their eating, drinking, playing, and leisure needs.

“It’s not good to grab the microphone all the time and take up everyone’s time. However, Pingle is a non-heritage cultural aspect and a niche culture. We are like small flowers that are slowly blooming. Now that this flower is gradually blooming, I, Jinhua, am willing to add beauty to Shanghai’s urban cultural construction.” After Lu Jinhua’s speech ended, applause broke out once again.

You May Have Missed