Check Out the Jam-Packed Entertainment for This Year's Beijing Pizza Fest, Oct 19-20

As next weekend's (Oct 19-20, 11am-8pm) Pizza Festival draws near, so does the excitement for all the different entertainers, musicians, and performers that will grace the stage at Chaoyangmen's Galaxy Soho.

And what a line-up we have. While you're feasting on delicious food and drinks, there'll be bands, singing and costume competitions, performers, and even pizza tossing troupes hitting the stage to keep you pumped until the very last slice is served.

Read on for a little taste of what will be in store...

Mamma Mia: The Opera Challenge

Mamma mia! We hope you've done your vocal exercises because our epic Opera Challenge will challenge Beijing's best singers to push their lungs to the max. Anybody can sign up to take part in this competition, which simply requires you to hold a note for as long as possible. Sounds easy, right? Well... we'd like to see you try! Register to compete by sending your name, age, nationality, and a picture to marketingteam@truerun.com. The contest will be held on both Saturday and Sunday, with plenty of great prizes to be won. 

Emperor & Empress: Best Toga Competition

Ah, the mighty toga... While wearing one can be as simple as throwing a bedsheet over your shoulder and calling it a day, we know that there are plenty of creative Beijingers out there who will take their costuming talents even further. There are so many ways to tie a toga (click here for more), and accessories: think Roman sandals, wreaths, and the kind of jewelry that would please a Caesar.

Each day, the best-dressed among us will parade on stage, and be judged on the Most Original Costume, Best Imperial Walk, and Best Original Statue Pose. Winners will be proclaimed Emperor and Empress of the Festival, and bask in the adoration of the public, just like a true Roman ruler! Sign up to be part of the contest by sending your name, age, nationality and a picture to marketingteam@truerun.com. If you need a little help getting started on your outfit, don't forget that you can buy a toga with your tickets right here.

SJ Benne 

One-woman band SJ Benne loops instruments, beats, and vocals for a performance that shines with her deep, poetic lyrics and authentic, earthy stage presence. Fusing jazz, soul, and classical vocal stylings over funky grooves, Benne's sound is unique and recognizable and is guaranteed to get you moving.

Gin·Ko

A multicultural pop and rock outfit based in Beijing, Gin·Ko take their name for the phonetic sound for the Chinese word jìnkǒu 进口, meaning "imported." It's a fitting title as this expat band brings a mixture of feel-good beats and delicious sounds to get you jumping and dancing to tunes in both English and Spanish.

Pizza Face

Remember Pizza Face, the nasty villain from Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, who feasted on human flesh? Well, this badass group is bringing that same fast, nasty (and tasty) energy to the stage with their mix of punk, garage rock, and squealing guitar riffs. Led by the massive explosive power of their female lead singer, Pizza Face invites you to get down and scrappy to some good old fashion punk.

Sazón

If you've been to one of our festivals in the past, you'll understand why we can't help but keep asking Sazón back for one more dance. These Cuban moves, honed at their Shangdu Soho-based dance school, are absolutely infectious, as evidenced by the hordes of (only slightly inebriated) people dancing until the very last moment of our previous events. If you make it to the end, we dare you not to join in.

Tube Station Pizza Tossing Contest

As always, Tube Station's pizza tossing team wow the crowd with their mastery, spinning dough high enough into the sky that it threatens to never come down again. After showing you what they've got, they'll be tossing pizza at you, so make sure you come hungry.

DJs: Cousin Kippy and Pancake Lee

When you're not stuffing your face with pizza or enjoying the several acts above, we have two the city's finest DJs on hand to keep you bopping. On Saturday, DJ Cousin Kippy takes the stage to unleash his exotic mix of '80s deep cuts, a splash of disco, and Japanese city pop. Then on Sunday, DJ and founder of Aurora club in Sanlitun Pancake Lee (pictured above) takes to the decks to spin his bag of low-key techno hits and dancefloor bangers. These boys never let us down.

Early bird tickets for the 2019 Beijing Pizza Fest are still available and can be bought via this link or by scanning the QR code below:

Vista Medical Center is the official medical sponsor for this year's Beijing Pizza Fest.

Images courtesy of the performers and sponsors