Did someone mention Cultya?

In Chengdu, I attended an evening of Sichuan Culture. Two fellow intrepid travellers, Hans #1, Hans #2 and I set off for a night promising laughter, acrobatics and opera. Well, we certainly got the laughter component.
The mini bus was teeming with middle age tourists seeking a break from the perils of travelling through the treacherous heartland of China.... this should have been a good indication that perhaps this wasnt going to be the most enjoyable evening.
We were whisked away to the local opera house, and after much ado over the tickets, we were allowed to enter. The evening begun with acrobatics which was mostly enjoyable, especially when the little girl performing got her act together. There was a variety of Opera, Sichuan and comedic... it was hard to distinguish between the two. The subtitles provided for an interesting interpretation of the scenes (what are 'hibies?'). The best part was the grand mask changing finale, which was pretty spectacular. I fell asleep during the classical music component, only to be woken by Hans #2 who was quite dismayed at my lack of interest.
The evening improved after we went to a local restau and after pointing at a number of items on the menu, we were told simply 'lo,lo', which we interpreted as meaning they didnt have any. After a good five minutes of 'lo,lo' we ordered peanuts! No, seriously! We did manage to find 2 other dishes, but no rice was forthcoming. Altogether, it made for a most enjoyable evening, even if it did end with the very un-Chinese viewing of a number of pirated Hollywood DVDs.