China National Acrobatic Troupe magician Hu Linglong named a ‘Leading Magic Talent of the New Era’

The Arts Department of the Ministry of Culture and Tourism has released its "Letter on Publishing the List of Leading Magic Talents of the New Era," in which Hu Linglong (legal name Hu Bo), an outstanding magician of the China National Acrobatic Troupe, was awarded the title "Leading Magic Talent of the New Era." As the representative magician of the China National Acrobatic Troupe under the Beijing Performance & Arts Group, Hu Linglong was nominated by the Beijing Municipal Bureau of Culture and Tourism, and has set an example and contributed his strength to building the cultural calling card of a "capital of performing arts."

Since the Ministry of Culture and Tourism began its "National Leading Magic Talents Program" in 2022, 20 people have been selected for training from the high-level magic performers nominated across the country. Through concentrated classes, interactive discussion, performance training, creative practice and expert guidance, the participants were led to clarify further their ideas about creation and performance, grasp the principles of creative work, improve their performing technique and strengthen their ability to produce acts; all 20 completed the programme successfully. After comprehensive assessment and review of their works, 10 outstanding participants were awarded the title "Leading Magic Talent of the New Era."

As a magic performing artist with the China National Acrobatic Troupe under the Beijing Performance & Arts Group, Hu Linglong is skilled in technique and accomplished in performance, with a personal style of his own. His signature act "Secret Realm," refined over time, has won the Magic Act Award at the 11th China Golden Chrysanthemum Award for Circus Arts and several other professional prizes, and this year it was invited to the 2024 China Acrobatics Gala. He has taken the lead in a number of productions: the magic and vocal-mimicry gala "Magic & Voice" and the new magic variety play "Dreammaker: Secret Realm" toured the country in 2022 and 2023 respectively, and in February this year, as the magic performing artist of the European company of the "Cultural China · Spring Festival Tour" overseas Chinese goodwill performance troupe, he gave 7 performances in 6 cities across 3 countries — the United Kingdom, Italy and the Netherlands — winning wide praise from specialists in the field, from the market and from audiences. As an inheritor of intangible cultural heritage in acrobatics and magic, Hu Linglong has consistently advanced the transmission and development of magic in a spirit of bold innovation, used his keen artistic instinct to help create fine work, and kept exploring on stage the wider possibilities for himself and for magic, so that magic shows its charm anew in the new era.