Journey to the East 1997 was a programme of The 1st International Conference on Urban Culture, a Cultural Exchange Project among the regions of mainland China, Taiwan and Hong Kong. The programme was divided in three parts: Performing Arts, Visual Arts and Public Forum. It was set to be a platform for cultural exchange of the regions.

In Journey to the East Performance Arts Programme, artists from different cities and different disciplines are invited to create a series of short performances of 20 minutes each. These short pieces share the same framework of two performers and one table two chairs as backdrop. “One table two chairs” is the basic setup of traditional Chinese opera.