A press conference for the eighth Wuzhen Theater Festival was hosted in Beijing on Sept 6, announcing its schedule, format and program.

With the keyword "burgeoning", this year's festival will take place from Oct 15 to 24 in Wuzhen, Zhejiang province, and include events like Specially Invited Plays, Emerging Theater Artists' Competition, the Outdoor Carnival and the Wuzhen Dialogues.

66 performances of 24 plays from around the country will be staged in Wuzhen's 12 theater venues. Tickets will be released at 10 am on Sept 16.

Due to international travel restrictions, a special section called "The Best of World Theater" will be set up, with classic performances from major international theater festivals to be screened in Wuzhen's Canal Side Theater.

This year, the festival's Emerging Theater Artists' Competition received a record high of over 500 entries on its assigned topic of "trees, bread and the past". 18 shortlisted works will enter the next round in Wuzhen.