The Preliminary Round of the 3rd “Melco Macao Star-Youth Talent Competition” Held at the University of Macau

The preliminary round of the 3rd “Melco Macao Star – Youth Talent Competition” was held from November 2nd to 3rd at the E21A Black Box Theatre, University of Macau (UM). 1,284 young participants from 60 schools and organizations in Macao enthusiastically participated, with 191 programs competing and 50 programs advancing to the next round. The preliminary competition was supported by the Cultural Affairs Bureau of the Macao SAR Government and jointly organized by Melco Group, National Conditions Education (Macau) Association, and the Centre for Chinese History and Culture of UM. Mr.Wang Haitao, President of the National Conditions Education (Macau) Association, Mr.Lou Shenghua, Vice President, and preliminary round judges Mr.Xu Qing, Ms.Chen Yaming, Ms.Lu Jia, Sheng Mei, Ms Liu Changmei attended the opening ceremony held on the morning of November 2nd at the Black Box Theatre.

This year’s competition featured many spectacular performances of excellent traditional Chinese culture, including poetry recitation, Chinese classical dance, ethnic dance, traditional musical instruments, and lion dance performances. There were also intangible cultural heritage performances such as Nanyin Music and diabolo, with all performing teams demonstrating thorough preparation, which was both moving and surprising.

Building on the success of the previous two competitions, the 3rd “Melco Macao Star – Youth Talent Competition” continues to promote Chinese culture and cultivate patriotic sentiments among local youth, while also serving as a tribute to the dual celebration of the 75th anniversary of the founding of the People’s Republic of China and the 25th anniversary of Macau’s return to the motherland. The competition was honored to be selected as a supporting event for the 2024 Greater Bay Area Youth Public Welfare Annual Conference organized by the China Soong Ching Ling Foundation, fully demonstrating the competition’s prestige and reputation. This year marks the “dual celebration” of the 75th anniversary of the nation’s founding and the 25th anniversary of Macau’s return to the motherland. The organizers believe that through this competition, they can not only showcase the talents of Macau’s youth but also inspire their patriotic love for the country and Macau, demonstrating to the world the diverse talents and positive spirit of Macau’s new generation after the return, and tell the “Macau story” of the successful practice of “One Country, Two Systems.”