Date with a Musical

Author: Qiu Yi
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2004-06-01
Features: Chinese musical theatre does not merely chase the global trend of musicals. China needs musicals, and the development of musicals also needs China. There are economic and material reasons, but more importantly, there are cultural and spiritual reasons. The momentum of musicals can still be traced back to the cultural component level. We basically agree with the interpretation of musicals by Jia Xiaowei, the main editor of "Era of Music": "Personally, I think musicals are a modern variation of European classical opera, a fruit of the grafting between classical music and popular culture, with the kernel still rooted in European culture. It can also be said that the great success of musicals is a breakthrough of transformed European culture in the modern wave. This musical form combines singing, dancing, and stage design, showcasing great opulence." In other words, musicals have a strong foundation in Western classical music while also possessing an open quality to adapt to external conditions. They can preserve traditional elegance, absorb new elements of music, dance, and stage design, and can also be packaged very stylishly and made very sensational. Therefore, we can almost predict that, given time, musicals will flourish in China, especially in developed regions like Beijing, Shanghai, and Guangzhou.