ABOVE: The team representing The Legend of Camel Bells with their IAAPA Brass Ring Award. Photo by Judith Rubin.
Shandong Huaxia Cultural Tourism group has been named for two prestigious, international honors: a TEA Thea Award for “The Legend of the Gods” and an IAAPA Brass Ring Award for “The Legend of Camel Bells” – both original, live theatrical multimedia shows operating on Huaxia theme park resort properties in China. Huaxia Cultural Tourism Group is also being recognized as a pioneer of environmental restoration in connection with one of the awards.
The two awards were announced in Orlando USA in November 2019 during the annual IAAPA Expo, the world’s foremost trade event for the global attractions industry. Both the awarded shows were produced by Huaxia Cultural Tourism Group as part of its “Legend” spectacle series, realizing the artistic and business vision of Huaxia Chairman Xia Chunting.
Chairman Xia said, “We’re extremely gratified to be honored with a TEA Thea Award and an IAAPA Brass Ring Award in the same year. TEA and IAAPA are well-established, prominent international organizations in the attractions industry; to receive this level of recognition from them validates the quality and success of our work and enables us to continue in our goal to share the Chinese culture with our own people and with others around the world. These globally recognized awards confer worldwide recognition and acclaim to Huaxia Cultural Tourism Group as a leader in the development, production and operation of major entertainment and cultural destinations.”
The awards confer worldwide recognition and acclaim to Huaxia Cultural Tourism Group as an innovative leader in cultural tourism development, a flourishing international sector driving tourism growth.
“THE LEGEND OF THE GODS” – TEA THEA AWARD
The Themed Entertainment Association (TEA) named “The Legend of the Gods” to receive a TEA Thea Award for Outstanding Achievement in the category of Live Show Spectacular.
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“The Legend of the Gods” is a unique, one-hour, multimedia nighttime lagoon show, theatrically staged on a monumental scale, serving an audience of 2,100 at Huaxiacheng Tourism Scenic Area, Weihai Huaxia City in Shangdong, China. It was made possible by a pioneering, 16-year land restoration and redevelopment spanning thousands of acres that included moving 60 million cubic meters of dirt and planting more than 11 million trees in an area that had been devastated by mining.
TEA’s distinguished industry panel, the TEA Thea Awards Committee, cited “excellence on a celestial scale” and “a breathtaking theatrical venue in an amazing environmental reclamation project,” commending Huaxia Cultural Tourism Group Chairman Xia Chunting’s substantial commitment. The project is consistent with government goals for sustainably focused, cultural tourism sites within China, and was honored with a personal visit from President Xi Jinping.
A representative of Huaxia Cultural Tourism Group will attend the 26th annual TEA Thea Awards Gala (taking place in the US at Disneyland Resort in Anaheim, California) on April 18, 2020 to formally accept the trophy from TEA.
“THE LEGEND OF CAMEL BELLS” – IAAPA BRASS RING AWARD
The International Association of Amusement Parks & Attractions (IAAPA) presented a Brass Ring Award trophy for Best Theatrical Production for “Legend of Camel Bells” at the official awards ceremony on November 19, 2019 in Orlando.
“The Legend of Camel Bells” is a permanent show at the Huaxia Cultural Tourism resort in Xi’an in scenic Huaxia City, a 6-billion-yuan enterprise already recognized with numerous leisure and tourism awards, including a TEA Thea Award in 2019. The show dramatizes a story of the Silk Road with epic scale and spectacle, blending state-of-the-art theater technology, live performance and animal actors, and monumental, animated sets and effects and surround sound. The 3,000-seat, purpose-built theater is designed with a revolving auditorium that delivers the audience to the sets that encircle it.
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The show was one of three finalists in its IAAPA Brass Ring Award category and in winning the award, “Legend of Camel Bells” beat out two shows at Disney parks. See the official IAAPA Brass Ring Awards finalist list.
