A dancer from Colombia's Passion Caribbean Song & Dance Ensemble, which will participate in the China-Latin America and Caribbean 2016 Year of Cultural Exchange. [Photo provided to China Daily]

The China-Latin America and Caribbean 2016 Year of Cultural Exchange will offer local audiences a closer look at the more colorful aspects of their cultures and help forge a deeper understanding between the regions. Chen Nan reports.

Latin American and Caribbean art will be in the limelight in China for the rest of the year. And the first event to kick off this extravaganza will be a two-day gala at Beijing's Tianqiao Performing Arts Center on March 24 and 25.

Organized by the China Arts and Entertainment Group, which was founded in 1957 as the country's first performing arts group to engage in cultural-exchange programs, the gala will cover various art forms, including tango, ballet, opera and chorus, presented by hundreds of artists from China, Latin America and the Caribbean.

According to Han Baoquan, the director of the gala, all the programs will be linked and presented with stories. "Because Chinese audiences may not be familiar with Latin American culture, we will have Lang Lang, the famous Chinese pianist, to provide some background information before each program," Han tells China Daily. He was the director of the closing ceremony of the "Year of China in South Africa" in Johannesburg, South Africa, in December last year.

Lang, who is the face of the China-Latin America and Caribbean 2016 Year of Cultural Exchange, will also perform at the gala.

This August, the pianist will hold concerts in Latin America and will invite 100 young people during his tour of four countries, including Chile and Argentina, to lectures and workshops.