PROPAGANDA!

Of the many forms of propaganda I have observed, the most interesting and disturbing kind was the Peking Revolutionary Opera. I first encountered this art form in China, four years ago. I was flipping through the channels on television and I came upon an opera but this was very different than any Chinese opera I had ever experienced before. The costumes were modern and the color red was everywhere. The attitude of nearly every character was excessively empowered, almost cocky. Their posture extended beyond their height and their eyes appeared as if they were going to pop out of their sockets. I immediately recognized the communist symbolism and was utterly appalled and offended that an art form as intricate, ethereal and uplifting as Chinese opera was being bent toward such a mundane, egotistical, manipulative aim. So, when I was given this assignment I knew exactly what I wanted to write about. Upon researching the art form my mind has changed a bit. If you notice, in the pictures, the women are depicted as just as strong and empowered as the men. There is no distinction between them that presupposes value or power over one or the other. Apparently women's liberation arrived in China earlier than it did in the West. A woman speaking about the topic online made a very good point: American and European ballerinas are still dressed as sylphs floating on the shoulders of their strong men. But China's ballerinas are so strong and independent they can carry rifles while they dance en pointe! For the Chinese, this art is didactic but also aesthetic and entertaining. -Julia Evergreen Keefer.