HAIKOU, Feb. 4 (Xinhua) -- Deng Chongying, who sang an original song on the big stage of a small village in south China's Hainan Province, has joined in the Spring Festival gala held in the village for 37 consecutive years ever since his debut at the age of five.

As one of the most talented persons in the Liuluo village of the city of Danzhou, Deng is capable of singing, photography, video editing, and stage arrangement, and has served as the general director of the gala for years.

"The village gala has become an expectation of all the villagers each year," said Deng.

More than 400 people live in Liuluo, where locals make a living mainly by planting rubber. At the center of the village is a spacious cultural square with a big stage.

Without any gorgeous stages, splendid lights, or professional actors, the gala was completely directed and performed by the villagers themselves.

In 1986, inspired by the China Central Television (CCTV) Spring Festival Gala, several young people in the village organized the first spring festival gala with self-raised funds.

"It was not easy to find a television at that time," recalled 76-year-old villager Deng Guoqing.

The village's first spring festival gala was held on the grounds just in front of Deng's house. The stage was decorated with balloons and colored pieces of paper, and the performances were all supported by the use of a cassette player.

"Even with the shabby stage and amateur performances, the gala entertained all the villagers for the whole night," Deng added.

Huang Yueshuang, 55, was an acquainted actress for the gala. Her family members sang and danced on the gala stage with five performances.

"We raised more than 200,000 yuan (about 31,000 U.S. dollars) from all the family members to renovate and expand the old house in 2021," said Huang.

In January, China's Ministry of Culture and Tourism announced the list of 80 demonstration regions for this year's "village Spring Festival galas," and Liuluo was among them.

Local official Wan Shouqiang said what has happened to the stage has reflected the changes of the village for the past 37 years, and the local spring festival gala has become a cultural symbol of homesickness and folk style.