The Jiangsu water town of Jinxi recently hosted a spectacular Yangtze River Delta xuanjuan competition from Oct 15 to 16.

Xuanjuan is a traditional form of Buddhist storytelling with roots in the Tang (618-907) and Song (907-960) dynasties. The Jinxi contest attracted 14 separate teams from the provinces of Jiangsu, Zhejiang and the municipality of Shanghai.

The art form was listed as a national intangible cultural heritage in 2014 and combines singing with narrative drama often depicting everyday fishing and farming scenes. It has traditionally been performed at temple fairs, marriage ceremonies and other celebratory occasions.

The style of xuanjuan performed at this year's Jinxi event represented a modern branch of the ancient art form with many scenes and storylines mirroring reality and drawing inspiration from contemporary life.

After two days of exemplary performances and fierce competition, the first prize was awarded to the teams from Jinxi town recreational center and Jingjiang city cultural center.

Jinxi is widely considered as the birthplace of xuanjuan and remains a strong advocate of the historic art form. These efforts include the establishment of a special xuanjuan gallery and the continued hosting of xuanjuan competitions.

Click here to watch a clip from A Good Officer; http://v.youku.com/v_show/id_XMTc2MjQwNDg2MA==.html

Performers enact a scene from A Good Officer, a well-known xuanjuan work.