Chinese Lives

News from China’s two national committees that are current in session, tell that Beijing Opera will become compulsory in campus. This traditional culture programme aims to cultivate classic culture appreciation of students from early ages to elders.

However, there is a row about which opera songs should be gathered in the text book. Much complaints fire at the Education Ministry who chose more adapted Red Opera than standard Beijing Opera songs. Their major concerns are as a result of the Red Culture between 1960s and 1970s, adapted opera can not properly represent Chinese traditional culture.

Beijing Opera artists up a suggestion to the Ministry that the traditional culture program should teach standard opera in majority, out of concerns that after generations true Beijing Opera might be lost if adapted popular version are accepted by the mass population.

For normal people like those random speakers on Tianya forum, they do not think it a big deal. Adapted opera is simpler for young beginners. As long as taken as a mere interest, whether it is very standard does not matter much.