St. Petersburg News: From the 21st to the 23rd, the first St. Petersburg University Students' Chinese Culture and Art Festival was held at St. Petersburg State University in Russia. The festival was hosted by the Chinese Consulate General in St. Petersburg and hosted by the Confucius Institute of St. Petersburg National University. During the festival, China Poetry Reading Contest and China Drama Line Performance Contest were held. Dozens of Chinese learners from Moscow, St. Petersburg and other parts of Russia participated in the competition. The contestants read Chinese classical poetry and modern poetry, and also performed excerpts from the drama "Longxu Valley", the Beijing opera "Empty City Plan", and the drama "Li Bai". Anastasia of the Russian State Higher School of Economics won the first place in the reading competition by reciting Xi Murong's Love You, and Christina of St. Petersburg State University by reciting Li Bai's Wine to Ask the Moon. Christina also won the performance competition with her vivid role in the drama Li Bai. Ma Yide, the Russian president of the Confucius Institute at St. Petersburg State University, said that the competition demonstrated the students' demeanour and achievements in learning Chinese, which is conducive to enhancing the Russian people's understanding of Chinese history and culture and enhancing the friendship between the two peoples. Wang Lihua, the vice president of the International Culture School of Capital Normal University, which established the Confucius Institute in cooperation with St. Petersburg National University, said in a video address that the students felt the infinite charm of Chinese culture and art in poetry reading and drama performance, and wished them a beautiful youth on the art stage. (Liu Xinshe)