BEIJING, July 8 (Xinhua) -- The folk dance competition for the 12th Lotus Awards, China's top award for dancing art, will be held in Xichang, Liangshan Yi Autonomous Prefecture in southwest Sichuan Province, from August 8 to 10.

The jury received 351 entries from 34 provincial-level regions and centrally-administrated troupes and art academies, and selected 51 for the final competition for the Lotus Awards, according to a press conference by the China Dancers Association (CDA) Monday.

For the first time, the organizing committee will invite dance professionals and choreographers to a discussion session for advice on improving the shortlisted dancing works, said Luo Bin, secretary of the CDA's leading Party members group, at the press conference.

Sponsored by the CDA and the China Federation of Literary and Art Circles, the Lotus Awards were initiated in 1998 and remain the only national award for dancing in China.