Paying tribute to the "Glorious City", the situational dance drama "The Red Flag Flying" was staged recently
At the first light of dawn, the red flag flew high on the Customs Bell Tower by the Huangpu River. Then, more bright red flags came onto the stage, taking the audience back to the moment when Shanghai was liberated 75 years ago. This is a scene near the end of the original situational dance drama "Red Flag Flying" by Shanghai Customs.
Recently, an original situational dance drama co-organized by the Political Department of Shanghai Customs and the Propaganda Department of Huangpu District Committee, and jointly created by the Party Committee of Shanghai Customs, Huangpu Customs, Huangpu District Commerce Committee, and Bund Sub-district Office, completed its premiere at the China Grand Theater, adding a customs mark to the red cultural business card of Shanghai, the "Glorious City".
Many people remember the melodious bells of the Customs Building on the Huangpu River, calling it the sound that awakens Shanghai. And it is not just the bells that connect the building to Shanghai. The first red flag of victory on the Huangpu River once flew on the roof of the building. It was at 4:30 a.m. on May 25, 1949. Facing the guns and cannons of the Kuomintang army north of Suzhou River, a red flag rose slowly on the top of the Jiang Customs Building and fluttered in the wind. At the same time, a 30-meter-long huge banner "Welcome the People's Liberation Army to liberate Shanghai" was hung on the building. In front of the first floor, customs officers lit up firecrackers to celebrate, and the sound mixed with the gunfire on the other side, welcoming the upcoming victory.
The situational dance drama "The Red Flag Flying" tells the story of this red flag. The red flag, which symbolizes the revolutionary spirit and the light of victory, is embodied on the stage as a dancer in red. As she dances gracefully, the red light blooms from a spark to a gorgeous spread across the stage, implying the guidance of the party organization, leading the underground party members of Jianghaiguan to pursue light and move forward courageously.
One of the protagonists in the play, Guan Benxin, uses the name and story of a real person. Guan Benxin, now 104 years old, was once an underground party member of the Jianghai Customs and witnessed the thrilling history of the liberation of Shanghai. The celebratory firecrackers in front of the Jianghai Customs Building were secretly purchased by Guan under the organization's assignment. Although the names of the other main actors in the story are fictional, they are all created by the creative team based on in-depth excavation of a large amount of historical documents.
At the end of the dance drama, an elderly man who is approaching 100 years old tells the story of the red flag during the Shanghai Customs 2024 "Meet at the Bell Tower and Grow Together" building tour, but he refuses to reveal his name because he and those struggling figures in the past have a common name: an ordinary customs officer, a Chinese.
How to make red-themed performances attract audiences?
The creative team of "The Red Flag Is Flying" visited the Shanghai Archives many times to look for information. Their efforts paid off. They unearthed a handwritten letter from an eyewitness titled "The Customs and Port Police's Time in the People's Security Team and the Struggle Before and After". Under the plain language, it reveals the thrilling undercurrents in the process of transporting firearms back then, and this story has also been cleverly integrated into the plot design of the dance drama.
The creative team unanimously felt that the power of faith was too difficult to describe through words, and finally chose to use dance drama, a highly condensed stage narrative and beautiful image expression, to show it. The customs story was performed by customs officials and staff. 43 pure "amateurs" of the dance drama rehearsed hard under the guidance of professional choreographers, and even continued to practice with plasters, knee pads and waist braces...
In order to better understand the emotions of the characters, the customs officers visited the Qiyun Pavilion of Wing On Department Store, the Monument to the People's Heroes and other "red open-air museums" in Huangpu District, and visited and studied the red archive document exhibition celebrating the 75th anniversary of the liberation of Shanghai. They all said that participating in this performance was like taking a large-scale immersive party class, and they resonated with the red memories of their ancestors in a subtle way.
"Only by carefully studying the history of the Jianghai Customs Party organization and pursuing and polishing the details of the stage can we present the image of Jianghai Customs underground party members under the leadership of the Party in an enthusiastic and passionate state and win the recognition of the audience. This is also a respect and tribute to the predecessors of Jianghai Customs." Wang Haiying, Secretary of the Party Committee and Director of Huangpu Customs, said.
When the lights went dark, before the performance of "The Red Flag Flying" officially began, the documentary short film "The Red Flag" was shown on the big screen, telling the origins of "The First Red Flag on the Huangpu River" with more rigorous historical materials. This is the first broadcast of the "Centennial Bell Tower" series of micro-documentaries originally produced by Shanghai Customs. The first 6 episodes of the series will be released through Shanghai Customs' "Guansheng" WeChat public account and multiple media platforms. A month before the performance of "The Red Flag Flying", Shanghai Customs' another original drama "Water Crossing Branches" about the growth story of martyr Mao Liying also completed 3 performances and received good responses.
Jiang Wei, deputy director of the Political Department and director of the Party Committee of Shanghai Customs, said that Shanghai is the birthplace of the Communist Party of China, the starting point of its original aspirations and the breeding ground of the great spirit of party building. Red culture, Shanghai culture and Jiangnan culture complement each other here. Shanghai Customs regards strengthening cultural construction as an effective measure to stimulate the endogenous driving force of reform and development to the greatest extent. By deeply exploring the red resources of the customs, showing the essence of the red culture of the customs, and promoting the normalization and long-term effectiveness of party history learning and education, it contributes the strength of customs people to inherit cultural roots and strengthen cultural confidence.
Wang Huifeng, Party Secretary and Director of Hongqiao Airport Customs under Shanghai Customs, who plays the role of "Red Dancer Flame" in "Red Flag Flying", said: "Cultural works are like a bridge connecting the past and the present. We have the responsibility and mission to make the red cultural resources of the customs shine more brilliantly in the new era."
