01339nas a2200145   4500000000100000008004100001260000800042100001300050700001600063700001400079245010500093490000800198520097300206022001401179       2024                            d  cmar1 aShiNa Li1 aPuyue Zhang1 aEmma Wood00aFamiliarity and novelty in aesthetic appreciation: The case of intangible cultural heritage in China0 v1053 aInternational cultural heritage is of growing interest in terms of Chinese policy and as an important element of the tourist experience. This paper seeks to better understand the elements that lead to aesthetic appreciation of Chinese opera focusing on the seemingly opposite concepts of familiarity and novelty. It uses a novel mixed methods approach combining lab -based and field studies and incorporating physiological response measures and interviews. It identifies a complex relationship between familiarity and novelty discovering that when these overlap aesthetic appreciation and liking are enhanced. We make recommendations for incorporating additional elements within traditional intangible cultural heritage to attract young tourist audiences. These include incorporating humour as surprise, building aspects of familiarity beforehand and including moments of unexpected familiarity. Crown Copyright (c) 2023 Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.  a0160-7383