The Chinese embassy held a reception for Virginia's Richmond Ballet Company on Monday night in Washington, ahead of the troupe's tour of China later this month.

"Chinese audiences will soon be able to enjoy your wonderful performance. I am sure you will be given the warmest welcome in China," said minister Wu Xi at the reception. "At the same time, I believe you will experience in person China's splendid history, unique culture and the hospitality and friendliness of the Chinese people."

Wu said that people devoted to the art of ballet "have greatly improved mutual understanding and friendship" between Chinese and Americans. "You are also ambassadors between China and the United States," she said.

Stoner Winslett, the Richmond Ballet's artistic director, expressed her gratitude and excitement for the upcoming tour of China, saying that "there is no way to undertake this trip without the staff's special friends in the United Stated from China."

The Richmond Ballet is a nationally recognized education and performance institution founded in 1957.

Later this month, the Richmond Ballet will make its Chinese debut in Beijing. Its stay in China from May 17 to June 1 will be its first ever visit to China since its founding. The troupe will perform at the Meet in Beijing Arts Festival and from there go on tour to Dezhou, Jinan and Shanghai.

They will feature four short works, including two ballets by American choreographers, Valse Fantaisie and After Eden; and two ballets commissioned and premiered by the Richmond Ballet, Swipe and Lift the Fallen.

The Richmond Ballet's visit to China will be the last installment of the New Road to China program initiated by the troupe in 2014, which celebrates Chinese culture.

The program has already hosted a series of events, including teaching thousands of elementary students Chinese-style dance in a community outreach program.

Invited by the Richmond Ballet, Wang Ye and Ma Xiaodong, two principal dancers from the National Ballet of China, performed the lead roles in Richmond's performance of Don Quixote from Feb 20-22. This also marked the beginning of a mutual cultural exchange program.

The troupe also held a Chinese New Year Gala on Feb 28, attracting more than 300 attendees, including Virginia's governor.

"I am proud to officially welcome the Richmond Ballet as one of the celebrated performers that will take the stage for the 15thannual 'Meet in Beijing' Festival," said Lu Kang, former minister of China's embassy.

"Cultural exchanges such as theRoad to Chinaprogram advance mutual understanding and help substantiate the new model of major country relationship envisioned by President Xi Jinping and President Barack Obama at their Sunnylands meeting last year," he said.

The Richmond Ballet Company will celebrate their China tour with four preview performances from the Road to China program at the Richmond Ballet Studio Theatre from May 12-15.

Liu Xiaoxian in Washington contributed to this story.