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Cultural Revolution concert fuels China power struggle rumours
Source: The Guardian
Cultural Revolution concert fuels China power struggle rumours
Mao-themed show on eve of 50th anniversary of decade-long upheaval
exposes party divisions over how period is viewed
Tom Phillips in Beijing
Tuesday 10 May 2016 13.50 BST
With just days to go until the 50th anniversary of Mao Zedong’s devastating Cultural Revolution, a Maoist revival show staged at the nerve centre of Chinese politics has sparked a ferocious political row, fuelling persistent rumours about a struggle for power at the top of the Communist party.
The Mao-themed extravaganza was held in early May at the Great Hall of the People, a colossal granite edifice in Tiananmen Square that hosts China’s most important political events.
Online footage of the spectacular showed giant images of Mao and the current president, Xi Jinping, being projected over the stage as dozens of choristers performed revolutionary “red songs” harking back to the days of Mao.
During a rendition of Sailing the Seas Depends on the Helmsman - an anthem from the Cultural Revolution – the Great Hall’s cavernous auditorium filled with the lyrics:
[font size=1]-snip-[/font]
At another moment a banner appeared reading: “People of the world unite to defeat American invaders and their running dogs!”
[font size=1]-snip-[/font]
Mao-themed show on eve of 50th anniversary of decade-long upheaval
exposes party divisions over how period is viewed
Tom Phillips in Beijing
Tuesday 10 May 2016 13.50 BST
With just days to go until the 50th anniversary of Mao Zedong’s devastating Cultural Revolution, a Maoist revival show staged at the nerve centre of Chinese politics has sparked a ferocious political row, fuelling persistent rumours about a struggle for power at the top of the Communist party.
The Mao-themed extravaganza was held in early May at the Great Hall of the People, a colossal granite edifice in Tiananmen Square that hosts China’s most important political events.
Online footage of the spectacular showed giant images of Mao and the current president, Xi Jinping, being projected over the stage as dozens of choristers performed revolutionary “red songs” harking back to the days of Mao.
During a rendition of Sailing the Seas Depends on the Helmsman - an anthem from the Cultural Revolution – the Great Hall’s cavernous auditorium filled with the lyrics:
[font size=1]-snip-[/font]
At another moment a banner appeared reading: “People of the world unite to defeat American invaders and their running dogs!”
[font size=1]-snip-[/font]
Read more: http://www.theguardian.com/world/2016/may/10/cultural-revolution-anniversary-show-power-struggle-rumours-mao-china