"Sports, culture and education are the three main ideas of Coubertin, who is both a sport and arts administrator. The Beijing Olympics Games is a rare party for Chinese people to communicate with friends from all over the world. And, of course, the cultural and art events are an important part of the party," says Ding Wei, assistant to the Minister of Culture.

The Greek National Theater's performance of classic Greek tragedy Prometheus Bound is one of the highlights of the 2008 Meet in Beijing Arts Festival. [Agencies]

"With the principles of Olympism - peace, friendship and progress, Beijing will provide a platform for locals and visitors to share culture and arts with each other and celebrate the accomplishments of artists from all over the world," Ding says.

"Arts and sports both are universal languages that bridge people from different countries and backgrounds. I believe the cultural events will create a magic and harmonious atmosphere for the Olympic Games," says Zhang Yu, general manager of China Arts and Entertainment Group.

Some 260 shows ranging from music, dance and theater, and 160 exhibitions of visual arts from 80 countries, will run at the festival.

Every year, the Meet in Beijing Arts Festival has a main guest country. This year, the focus will be on Greece, the birth country of the Olympic Games.

At the Great Hall of the People on June 23, the festival will kick off with a ritual performance by some 40 Greek musicians and dancers along with the Beijing Symphony Orchestra and dancers from the Beijing Dance Academy.

The show is directed by Lambros Liavas, artistic director of the Greek National Opera, and choreographed by Artemis Ignation, who created the flame-lighting ceremony for the Beijing Olympics. It is a theatrical version of how the Olympic flame was lit at the Temple of Hera in Olympia.

"Traditional Greek music and Chinese music have much in common, for example they are all five-tone scales. I believe we can understand each other better and easier through music," says Liavas who is also a professor of musicology at the University of Athens, and the founder and director of the Museum of Greek Folk Musical Instruments.

In addition to the opening show, Greece will also bring the modern dance Medea, created by Dimitris Papaioannou, director of the opening and closing ceremonies for the 2004 Athens Olympic Games. The Greek National Theater will perform the classic Greek tragedy Prometheus Bound.

Aside from Greece, Russia and South Korea will each present a mini-festival within the Meet in Beijing Festival.

Russian highlights include the Russian Ballet Star Gala, a song and dance show performed by Russian Starlight Express and a concert by four-man band Na-Na X.