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Chinese culture will be the focus of celebrations for the 40th anniversary of Europalia, one of the top art festivals in Europe, organizers say.

The “Europalia-China” festival, to run from Oct. 8 to Feb. 14, 2010 in Belgium, will show Chinese lifestyle and arts, including movies, music and operas to European audiences, said General Commissioner Claire Kirschen on Tuesday.

Kirschen told Xinhua at a press conference that, although the event was being run in Belgium, organizers had come to Paris to promote it among their French neighbors.

According to the Europalia website, the festival will cover four main themes: Immortal China, Contemporary China, Colorful China and China and the World.

The event will feature about 50 exhibitions and 450 art performances, it says.

Democrat Party leader Abhisit Vejjajiva was elected as Thailand’s new prime minister at a special voting session in the House of Representatives on Monday.

Official tally results, as announced by House Speaker Chai Chidchob at around 11:30 a.m. (0430 GMT), showed Abhisit gained 235 votes from the total 437 incumbent members of parliament in the House, against the 198 votes for the other candidate — Puea Thai Party leader Pracha Promnok.

A total of 436 MPs have cast their votes. Three MPs abstained, including Abhisit himself. Chai closed the session immediately after announcing Abhisit’s victory in the voting.

A simple majority, which means at least 219, out of the 437 MP seats, is required for any candidate to be elected a prime minister.

The 44-year-old Abhisit will officially become the country’s 27th prime minister pending royal endorsement from the King.

The PM-elect thanked all MPs and people who supported him to be the prime minister after the voting. He declined to comment on current political situation, saying he would wait until he got royal endorsement.

The results mean the Democrat Party returned to the ruling seat after seven years on the opposition bench since Thaksin Shinawatraand his Thai Rak Thai party came to power in 2001.

Democrat Party secretary-general Suthep Thaugsuban said the line-up of the Abhisit Cabinet will be ready in seven days, with Abhisit himself, an Oxford graduate in economics, in charge of economic affairs.

After the voting, Puea Thai MP Paichit Sriworakhan said his party is ready to serve as the opposition in the new government and carry out its duties transparently.

Monday’s special parliamentary session, which kicked off at 9:30 a.m. (0230 GMT), was called after former prime minister Somchai Wongsawat lost his premiership with a Constitutional Court verdict on Dec. 2 that disbanded Somchai’s People Power Party (PPP), the leading party in the former coalition government formed in September, on electoral fraud charges.

Somchai was Thaksin’s brother-in-law and seen as opponents as a proxy of Thaksin, who went on exile after the Sept. 19, 2006 military coup that ousted him from the premiership.

The Puea Thai party was set up this September to shelter MPs from the former PPP as the shadow of party dissolution was loomingon the PPP.

Ahead of Monday’s voting, the Puea Thai party managed only to secure an alliance from the Pracharaj and Puea Pandin parties in its pledge to form a national government, while the Democrat garnered support from the former Chart Thai, Matchima Thipataya parties, the two coalition partners in the PPP-led government which were also disbanded along with the PPP, and Ruamjai Thai Chart Pattana, as well as some Puea Pandin members.

The most notable switch is a group of MPs called “Friends of Newin”, a faction close to Newin Chidchob, the former right-hand man to Thaksin, who voiced support for Abhisit to lead a coalition government.

At least dozens of “red-shirt” people, who are supporters of ousted prime minister Thaksin and the pro-Thaksin parties like PPP and Puea Thai, gathered outside the parliament compound since the morning. Learning the results, the angry demonstrators were seen attacking the compound gate with iron police barriers.

They also attacked some Democrat MPs’ cars parking outside the parliament and demanded a House dissolution.

American jazz singer Dee Dee Bridgewater is expected to be the high note of this year’s 6th annual JZ Festival in Shanghai. The two-time Grammy-award winner from Memphis, Tennessee, will open for the weekend-long outdoor jazz concert at Century Park on Oct 16.

Two days of live performances by nearly 20 national and international singers and bands will follow on Oct 17 and 18. Local stars will include China’s “Father of Rock” Cui Jian and acclaimed rock veterans Zheng Jun and Zhang Chu.

The Small Theater at the National Center for the Performing Arts (NCPA) went into operation today, ahead of China’s eight-day National Day holiday.

A total of 15 art shows are to be given during the holiday beginning on Oct.1. Among the artists to take the stage are Russian pianist Alexander Kobrin, American Chopin Competition winner Kevin Kenner and Chinese guitarist Yang Xuefei.

The vice president of NCPA Deng Yijiang said, “The theater is mainly to offer chamber music concerts, small recitals, experimental plays and modern dance.”

Small theater tends to give less traditional art shows and usually have a small capacity.

Equipped with an elevator stage, retractable stands and cutting-edge sound diffusion walls, it can seat 556 spectators. It is on the southwest section of the NCPA, immediately to the west of Tiananmen Square.

Malaysia’s conservative Islamic party called Sunday for a concert by US singer Beyonce to be banned, two years after her debut here was shelved over fears of protests by Muslim groups.

The R&B star is due to perform on October 25 at the Bukit Jalil national stadium just outside the capital, organiser Marctensia said on its website.

The Pan-Malaysian Islamic party (PAS) has campaigned against several foreign performers and in 2007, along with other Muslim groups, threatened protests that forced Beyonce to scrap her planned debut concert in Malaysia.

“We oppose the holding of such concerts and we will take action to prevent such a concert from taking place in Malaysia,” PAS youth chief Nasrudin Tantawi told AFP, without specifying what action would be taken.

“This performance is not suitable for Muslims as her skimpy attire and behaviour onstage are immoral and lead to unclean behaviour,” he said.

The scheduled concert is part of Beyonce’s “I am…” world tour, which has seen her perform in North America and Europe, the website said. The promoters could not be reached for comment.

Performances by foreign artists frequently come under fire in Malaysia, particularly from PAS.

The Islamic party called for Danish band Michael Learns to Rock to be banned from performing earlier this month, saying it was an insult to Muslims during the fasting month of Ramadan. The group managed to perform without incident.

It also held protests against Canadian rocker Avril Lavigne’s concert last year after failing to have it banned, saying her performance would weaken the younger generation “morally and mentally.”

A performance by Gwen Stefani was also targeted, and although the event went ahead she was forced to cover up after complaints about her skimpy outfits.

The Spanish Primera Liga sees a true ‘David and Goliath’ clash when Xerez visits the Santiago Bernabeu stadium on Sunday evening.

While Real Madrid was spending 260 million Euros on players such as Kaka, Cristiano Ronaldo and Karim Benzema, newly promoted Xerez lost half of its squad because of financial problems.

Coach Jose Angel Ziganda began pre-season training with just 13players on the books.

Xerez now have a squad filled with players who have arrived either for free or on loan, but defeats in its opening two games in the new category, hint that it is going to be a long season.

Real Madrid meanwhile has begun with two wins as well as a 5-2 triumph in Zurich in the Champions League.

Xabi Alonso is out for 10 days with a calf problem, while Christoph Metzelder will miss three weeks with a torn muscle.

Madrid coach Manuel Pellegrini will look to rest some players and make full use of his squad.

Sunday also sees Athletic Club Bilbao entertain Villarreal. Athletic has had a surprising start to the season with two league wins, while Thursday saw an impressive performance against Austria Vienna in the Europa League.

All eyes will be on Athletic’s 16 year-old forward Iker Muniain, although he may start the game on the substitutes’ bench.

Villarreal also won in Europe on Thursday, beating Levski Sofia1-0. They will be placing faith in Brazilian forward Nilmar.

Another side in European action in the week - Valencia entertains Sporting Gijon. Valencia striker David Villa began his career at Sporting and says one day he wants to return, but with his side challenging in the top four, he will be on the lookout to add to his goals tally.

Almeria will be looking to score its first goal of the season at home to Getafe, while finally recently promoted Zaragoza aims to recover from last weekend’s 4-1 thrashing in Seville, when struggling Valladolid is the visitor.

Celebrate five years of Yugong’s rock and underground electronic music with some of Beijing’s top DJs, including S-Press of Ultimate Productions, Dan of The Syndicate, Carlo of MeiWenti Sounds, Dio of Yen, Mickey Zhang of Yen and Yang Bing of White Rabbit.

Wu Fei & Xiao He at Song Music Bar and Kitchen: Guzheng virtuoso Wu Fei stunned Beijing on her visit last summer, and now she’s returning to the Beijing stage alongside local experimentalist Xiao He.

Diplo + Steve Aoki at Tango: Two of the biggest names in electronic dance music unite for a not-to-be-missed throw-down at Tango.

SATURDAYCity Weekend Fashionista Party at Scarlett Wine Bar & Restaurant: CW sets up a catwalk for a fun and hilarious Beijing fashion show, complete with DJs, drink deals and American Idol-style judges.

Great Aircraft Carrier Party at Binhai Aircraft Carrier: DJs Mickey Zhang, Patrick Yu, Blackie, El-Mar and the gang bring this summer’s rave scene to a wild climax atop a real aircraft carrier.

Plastered Rock Weekend Party at Yugong Yishan: The student band that wins the Plaster Rock Weekend battle at D-22 comes to Yugong Yishan to share the stage with local heroes Carsick Cars, PK-14 and The Gar.

Psyobiwan at Club Obiwan: The capital’s only psytrance crew transports you to mystical lands with the most mind-liberating bips, beets and bleeps from DJs Gotama (Belgium), Pete (London’s TipWorld) and Michael (Beijing).

DJ Mia at Bling: Whether working with Black Eyed Peas, touring with Rocky Rock, struttin’ her stuff on MTV or just rockin’ the Bling dance floor into hip-hop bliss, Mia does it all with singular style.

SUNDAYLucerne Festival Orchestra at the National Center for the Performing Arts: Conductor Claudio Abbado leads the Lucerne Festival Orchestra in four symphonic concerts and two chamber concerts.

Wine Dinner with Jeremy Oliver at Bei: Indulge in a six-course meal at Bei prepared by Chef Max Levy, with each course paired with two kinds of wine by one of Australia’s leading wine critics and writers, Jeremy Oliver.

All the glitz and glamor of Bollywood comes to Shanghai next month with the musical “The Merchants of Bollywood” at Shanghai Oriental Art Center.

The show features over 40 Bollywood performers on stage, 1,200 costumes and 2,500 pieces of Indian jewelry. The song-and-dance extravaganza ranges from Indian classical dances to modern-day Western styles, jazz and disco.

“The Merchants of Bollywood” is a story of families, dynasties and dreams. It is named after Hiralalji Merchant and his grand daughter Vaibhavi Merchant, two notable Indian choreographers.

It successfully premiered in Australia in 2005 and has toured Europe, the United States and Australia. Its Chinese tour covers Beijing, Shanghai, Yantai in Shandong Province and Wuhan in Hubei Province.

The show runs in Shanghai from October 5 to 7 at 7:15 p.m.

A Taiwanese woman’s ambition to kiss 100 men in Paris has become an overnight web sensation after she provided details of the quest on her much-visited blog.

Yang Ya-ching, a 27-year-old music major living in the French capital, has so far notched up 54 smooches, she said on her blog, which features photos of some of the encounters.

Collaborators in her project included a factory worker, a model, an Italian tourist and even a soldier visiting the capital of romance for Bastille Day.

“I came up with the idea three years ago,” she said on her blog.

“Three of my four friends who were aware of the plan warned me that I might wind up getting slapped rather than kissed.”

Yang, who plans to write a book about her kissing experiences, has attracted 1.97 million visitors to her blog (www.wretch.cc/blog/angelduck777/24982946), including more than 224,000 on Monday alone.

“Aren’t you afraid of catching a disease?” one of her followers asked.

“No,” she replied. “The more you’re afraid of, the less you accomplish.”

It was basically a strategy.

The CEO behind Taihe Rye music label, Song Ke, developed a digital roadmap for former Supergirl champion Li Yuchun since he offered her a contract in 2005.

Last week, the 25-year-old released her latest self-titled album in Beijing - digitally.

As fans previewed Li’s music without the guidance - or the filters - of radio programs, music critics or other conventional means of exposure, the album incited talk of a revolution in the music industry.

“The CD sales situation is not good now,” Li says.

“Transforming music into digital media is not on the company’s plan in terms of marketing. For me, as a singer, either way is fine, as long as listeners have an access to my music.”

Since Li stood out in the popular talent show Supergirl Singing Contest in 2005 with more than 3.5 million votes, which earned her a cover-page spot in Time Magazine Asia, her every move has made headlines. With her debut album receiving great acclaim, listeners focus more on her singing talent rather than on her tomboy image.

She has been involved with, and participated in, massive and numerous backstage and behind-the-scenes works.

The fourth album has eight songs Li scored by herself.

“It has a more personal style,” Li says.

“I am not a productive singer. But I want to participate more in producing and music making.”

She independently planned her previous album Youth of China, which was released last May and became a resounding success online.

“Many people asked me what my future plans are, but I really don’t have an ambitious list of career goals,” she says.

“I don’t intend to become a producer or a songwriter. I just let things go naturally.”