Honoring the Cultural and Natural Heritage Day that’s celebrated every year on the second Saturday of June, the China National Arts and Crafts Museum and China Intangible Cultural Heritage Museum in Beijing presented an online education program on June 11, delivered by Lu Baogang, a veteran shadow puppetry artist and head of Beijing Shadow Puppet Troupe.

One of the earliest theater performances in China, shadow puppetry emerged in the Han Dynasty (206 BC-AD 220) and developed into various styles across the country. Lu demonstrated how to carve and color a shadow puppet, and staged a brief show by using some of the most popular characters in shadow plays.