SANFORD - Central Carolina Community College's Confucius Classroom and Natural Chef Cafe will host a martial arts performance Sept. 16 featuring kung fu masters of the Shaolin Kung Fu Mission troupe.

The one-hour performance begins at 7 p.m. in the Main Exhibit Hall of the Dennis A. Wicker Civic Center, 1801 Nash St. A reception will be held at 5:30 p.m., and the CCCC Natural Chef Cafe will provide hors d'ouevres.

This event is free and open to the public. It is the first CCCC Confucius Classroom event solely dedicated to martial arts.

"We are honored to host the members of the Shaolin Kung Fu Mission," said CCCC Harnett County Associate Provost and Confucius Classroom Director Jon Matthews. "We see this as a fitting tribute to the mission of the Confucius Institute and the Confucius Classroom."

The performance will showcase the ancient art of Shaolin kung fu as four masters demonstrate barehanded and weapon styles of China's oldest form of martial arts. Students from the Black Belt Leadership Academy, a local martial arts school, will open with a student demonstration.

The program will feature various kung fu styles, such as tiger boxing, broad sword, Qigong, Fu Shan boxing, and Ba Duan Jin. Performances typically include acrobatics, swordplay and triumphs of skill such as a master breaking iron rods with his head or throwing a needle through a solid pane of glass.

Shaolin Kung Fu Mission has participated in world events in the United Kingdom, Greece, Singapore, Brazil and many other countries. The troupe's martial arts masters are prized champions of various techniques, each of them having earned top honors in world competitions.

The visiting masters are Yunnan Liu, Zhongxu Mu, Yuehui Yuan and Sun Gaoyang. Individual masters are prized champions of Ditang Quan (ground tumbling), Knife Usage and Double Broad sword; Knife and Pole, Cudgel and Sword and Nan Quan (southern fist wu shu); and/or Traditional Quan and in Shaolin Instrument Use. Each master has also performed in at least one of the following highly acclaimed stage performances: A Touch of Zen; Legend of Shaolin Temple Monks; Return of Kungfu; Soul of Shaolin and 13 Stick Monks.

The four touring members served as kung fu coaches for the Chinese Kung Fu Center of the Confucius Institute at Pfeiffer University from 2009 to 2012. The masters have all studied and taught at the Shaolin Martial Arts School, having begun their training there at the age of five.

The Shaolin Kung Fu Mission began its American tour in Williamsburg, Va., will perform in Sanford, and then continue on to performances in Charlotte and South Carolina.

Shaolin Kung Fu is considered to be the aspect of Chinese culture that has most impacted the Western world. It has been widely popularized by movie stars like Bruce Lee, Jet Li and Jackie Chan. It is the most culturally representative of the martial arts genre and has influenced other martial art forms including jujitsu, taekwondo and karate.

The CCCC Confucius Classroom, in partnership with the North Carolina State University Confucius Institute, is hosting this event in recognition of the tenth anniversary of the Confucius Institute, a non-profit institution established by the Ministry of Education of the People's Republic of China. Its goal is to promote Chinese language and culture for students, teachers, businesses and community members worldwide.

The CCCC Confucius Classroom promotes an intercultural exchange of language and culture through a range of educational and outreach activities, including hosting cultural events and offering both curriculum and continuing education Chinese language courses. For more information about the Confucius Classroom, visit www.cccc.edu/confucius.

The CCCC Natural Chef Cafe promotes the use of whole, organic, and local foods for general wellness and supports natural foods to create healthy lifestyles for the community. To learn more about it, visit www.cccc.edu/naturalchef.