Coinciding with 130th anniversary of late Beijing Opera master Mei Lanfang's birth, this year's Hong Kong Book Fair has made Beijing, Mei's birthplace, the theme city for the first time, offering an opportunity to deepen cultural exchanges between the two cities.

The cultural events along with the book fair were held on Thursday at the Chinese University of Hong Kong Library.

Mei Lanfang (1894-1961) was a Chinese theatrical performer, recognized as one of the greatest singer-actor-dancers in Chinese history. Mei was a pioneer of the newly emerging dan (a female role) actor genre in the early 20th century and founded the Mei Lanfang art school, which was imitated by others in the opera world. He was among the first to bring Peking Opera to the international arena.