Macau casino concessionaire MGM China Holdings Ltd says it has signed a strategic collaboration agreement with Guizhou Minzu University, in mainland China, which sees them jointly launching the “Macau 2049” Ethnic Arts Talent Cultivation Programme.
“Through this university-enterprise collaboration, both parties aspire to forge a new channel for the international promotion of intangible cultural heritage, injecting Guizhou’s distinctive cultural strengths into the global narrative of Chinese culture,” stated MGM China in a Friday press release.
MGM China launched in December the residency show “Macau 2049”. The company runs the resorts MGM Macau, on the Macau peninsula, and MGM Cotai in the city’s Cotai district.
According to the announcement, the agreement will make use of Guizhou Minzu University’s “strengths in ethnic arts education to establish an “Ethnic Arts Talent Development Center”.
Under this framework, MGM China “will select outstanding graduates annually by rigorous standards, to participate in the ‘Macau 2049’ residency show after specialised training,” said the company.
“This initiative will further expand the global outreach of Guizhou’s ethnic culture through Macau and explore commercial pathways for the intellectual property of intangible cultural heritage,” it added.
The release cited Catarina Lio, senior vice president of brand marketing of MGM China, as saying: “Each performance of ‘Macau 2049’ stands as a manifestation of our intangible cultural heritage to the world.
“We anticipate Guizhou students’ performances resonating throughout Macau and contributing to the cultural landscape of the Greater Bay Area.”
Wang Lin, president of Guizhou Minzu University, remarked during the signing ceremony that the collaboration “not only paves the way for dynamic transmission of intangible cultural heritage through the integration of industry and education, but also establishes a cultural bridge that connects Guizhou directly to the Greater Bay Area”.
