On Nov 8, Douyin Live released the "2022 Douyin Performance Live Data Report" (hereinafter referred to as the "report"). Over the past year, more than 32 million live broadcasts of performing arts, including operas, Musical Instruments, dances and dramas, were broadcast on Douyin, with an average audience of more than 3,900 per game, according to the report. That equates to nearly 90,000 medium-audience shows at Douyin every day.

Now, the offline performance market has been hit by the epidemic, and more and more offline performances have begun to explore online live streaming. Zhou Tingting, a young dulcimer player with the China National Orchestra, has been livestreaming live with her partner on Douyin's account "Dulcimer CP" since July this year. So far, the account has more than 31,000 followers.

Zhou Tingting said she chose to live on Tiktok because of the decrease of offline performances during the epidemic, and she hoped to regain the stage and audience through live streaming. On the other hand, it hopes to bring professional dulcimer performances to audiences outside the concert hall. "Only when more and more people know and appreciate the dulcimer, can the market expand and the dulcimer have a chance to spread more widely."

The income brought by live broadcasting also injects new vitality into the performing arts economy. For example, in July this year, Waking Lion, the winning play of the Lotus Award, the highest dance award in China, was scheduled to be performed offline in Chengdu, but due to the epidemic, the show was temporarily transferred to online live streaming at the price of one yuan, which eventually attracted more than 3.4 million people to watch.

In contrast, according to the data of China Performance Industry Association, the average box office of national dance performances in 2021 is about 138,000 yuan, with about 555 audiences. In addition, the report shows that in the past year, Tiktok's livestreaming income for performing arts increased by 46% year-on-year, with more than 60,000 talent anchors achieving an average monthly livestreaming income of more than 10,000 yuan.

In addition, the live broadcast also makes more endangered intangible cultural heritage projects have a new inheritance. Due to the change of times, multicultural impact, lack of performance market and other reasons, some intangible cultural heritage performance projects are facing the endangered situation, and they have become the crafts that need protection to be passed on.

These endangered intangible cultural heritage performances have gained renewed attention through platforms such as Douyin live streaming. According to the report, the daily broadcast of Tiktok's intangible cultural heritage was 1,617, with a year-on-year increase of 533% in reward revenue. Not only Cantonese opera, suona and other familiar art categories, but also endangered intangible cultural heritage performances such as Chaozhou opera, puppet show and English Song have received more than 10 million likes in the broadcast room.

On the user side, traditional cultural performances are also gaining "new audiences". According to the report, the total number of viewers of Douyin's live-streaming shows a year-on-year increase of 85%. Among them, netizens of all ages show different preferences for traditional cultural performances: the post-00s love crosstalk, the 1980s love guzheng, and the post-90s, 1970s and 1960s love Cantonese opera, Henan opera, Huangmei Opera and other operas.