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Beijing Games kicks off

By Raymond Zhou (chinadaily.com.cn)
Updated: 2008-08-09 07:19

Music

This echoes the "Scrol" number, with five of China's best classic paintings as an evolving backdrop. The first is Spring Outing, from the Sui and Tang dynasties of 1,300 years ago.

Along the River during Qingming Festival, by Zhang Zeduan, was from the Song Dynasty, about 1,000 years ago. It is about a busy street scene in Kaifeng, arguably the biggest metropolis in the world then.

A dancer performs on top of a painting during the 2008 Beijing Olympic Games opening ceremony on August 8, 2008 at the National Stadium in Beijing. [Agencies]

From the Yuan Dynasty, 700 years ago, we have a painting of a royal procession.

The Ming Dynasty painting, from some 600 years ago, depicts sports of the time, including arrow shooting and polo playing.

The last painting was commissioned in celebration of Emperor Qianlong's (1711-1799AD) 80^th birthday. It recreates the imperial party and its grandeur.

On top of the paintings are shown performing arts classics, such as the dance Moon Reflected in a Spring River, and Kunqu, China's oldest known opera. The majesty of the number reaches its zenith when 32 columns, each 2m in diameter and weighing 1.2 ton, ascend skyward and each shoots out a girl in full imperial regalia.

This number is about the good old days, the golden era in Chinese history, the times of singing and dancing, of painting and partying. It's about rituals and self-confidence. In a sense, it is about the ancient equivalent of the Olympics. It has a feel-good quality that infuses one with pride for the deep roots of Chinese civilization.

Starlight

Cosmic and translucent, this number provides a portal from the past to the present, even to the future. With pianist Lang Lang in the middle, group actors with light bulbs all over their bodies evoke a world of fantasy with their movements. They not just form cute objects like a dove or a smaller bird's nest, but add a touch of otherworldliness to the presentation.

Lang Lang performs during the opening ceremony of the Beijing 2008 Olympic Games at the National Stadium August 8, 2008. [Agencies] Pianist Lang Lang and a little girl perform surrounded by dancers during the 2008 Beijing Olympic Games opening ceremony on August 8, 2008 at the National Stadium in Beijing. [Agencies]

This is quite romantic, which is good for the pacing of the program. Thematically, it is a bit hollow, though.

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