The Evolution of the China Media Group Spring Festival Opera Gala: A Cultural Ritual Perspective
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Abstract
"Spring Festival Opera Gala" is a large-scale opera gala hosted by China Media Group (CMG) (formerly CCTV) and broadcast annually during the lunar new year. Unlike the renowned "Spring Festival Gala", it specializes in the vertical field of "opera".
This study employs a qualitative research methodology, involving the selection of four key interviewees: experts in traditional Chinese opera art, program directors and producers of the Spring Festival Opera Gala, as well as audience representatives. The research tools are categorized into three main types: program content analysis forms, semi-structured interview outlines, and participant observation records complemented by observation methods. The objective is to systematically collate the comprehensive program materials from the 36 editions of the "Spring Festival Opera Gala" organized by China Media Group from 1991 to 2026. This study delves into the developmental trajectory of the Spring Festival Opera Gala as a televised cultural ritual and examines the distinctive features of its evolution at various stages from the perspective of cultural rituals. The research findings elucidate: (1) the development f the Spring Festival Opera Gala; (2) The developmental trajectory of the Gala in terms of ritual structure, symbolic system, and collective participation. These findings suggest that future large-scale gala productions may benefit from employing digital media technology to reconstruct narrative scenes, thereby transforming opera ritual symbols into aesthetically accessible forms that broaden audience engagement and cultural resonance.
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