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Bikinis hit the wrong note with opera fans
Source: Xinhua |
September 26, 2012, Wednesday
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Print Edition
Print Edition
BEAUTY pageant contestants wearing bikinis designed with Peking Opera elements have upset many Internet users, who say the combination is spoiling the "quintessence" of Chinese culture.
Pictures of bikini-clad girls wearing Peking Opera headwear and performing on stage began circulating widely on the Internet this week following an announcement in Beijing of preparations for the finals of the 37th Miss Bikini International contest.
An overwhelming majority of online comments criticized the idea as a clumsy attempt to incorporate Chinese traditional elements into pop culture without paying due respect to the essence of Peking Opera, a 200-year-old form of theater that combines music, vocal performance, dance and acrobatics.
One Internet user commented on Weibo: "It may be a clever idea of commercial promotion, but to Peking Opera, the 'quintessence' of Chinese culture, it's an insult."
Another commented: "The beauty of Peking Opera should definitely not be presented with naked skin. Peking Opera-themed bikinis are vulgar."
Li Yulong, chairman of the contest's organizing committee, said the pictures were taken in April at a celebration performed by previous winners. The intention was to make the costumes more innovative and at the same time present traditional Chinese culture to foreign audiences.
His explanation was echoed by a smaller camp of Internet users who argued the act was just like fashion designers incorporating Chinese cultural elements into catwalk shows and that it was an effective way to attract attention to the art form. "Bodies are also a form of art. Only people with dirty minds see obscenity," one wrote.
Arising in Beijing in the late 18th century, Peking Opera fully developed in the 19th century and flourished in the 20th. However, after its heyday during the late 1970s and early 1980s, it gradually declined.
Chen Changwen, a researcher for the Chinese Theater Society, said innovation is a must for Peking Opera, but too bold an idea like the bikini one can do little to help the opera modernize or go global.
"At a time of rapid economic development and increasing cultural exchange, countries should pay even more attention to preserving their cultural traditions, particularly for an ancient civilization like China," Chen said.
Pictures of bikini-clad girls wearing Peking Opera headwear and performing on stage began circulating widely on the Internet this week following an announcement in Beijing of preparations for the finals of the 37th Miss Bikini International contest.
An overwhelming majority of online comments criticized the idea as a clumsy attempt to incorporate Chinese traditional elements into pop culture without paying due respect to the essence of Peking Opera, a 200-year-old form of theater that combines music, vocal performance, dance and acrobatics.
One Internet user commented on Weibo: "It may be a clever idea of commercial promotion, but to Peking Opera, the 'quintessence' of Chinese culture, it's an insult."
Another commented: "The beauty of Peking Opera should definitely not be presented with naked skin. Peking Opera-themed bikinis are vulgar."
Li Yulong, chairman of the contest's organizing committee, said the pictures were taken in April at a celebration performed by previous winners. The intention was to make the costumes more innovative and at the same time present traditional Chinese culture to foreign audiences.
His explanation was echoed by a smaller camp of Internet users who argued the act was just like fashion designers incorporating Chinese cultural elements into catwalk shows and that it was an effective way to attract attention to the art form. "Bodies are also a form of art. Only people with dirty minds see obscenity," one wrote.
Arising in Beijing in the late 18th century, Peking Opera fully developed in the 19th century and flourished in the 20th. However, after its heyday during the late 1970s and early 1980s, it gradually declined.
Chen Changwen, a researcher for the Chinese Theater Society, said innovation is a must for Peking Opera, but too bold an idea like the bikini one can do little to help the opera modernize or go global.
"At a time of rapid economic development and increasing cultural exchange, countries should pay even more attention to preserving their cultural traditions, particularly for an ancient civilization like China," Chen said.
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