Improving the Spring Festival Gala

Will it be good this year?

Just three more days until we can start complaining about the performances at this year's CCTV Spring Festival Gala.

It's kind of unfair, really. Months of planning and tens of thousands of person-hours are poured into the program, but with the exception of a standout segment or two each year, people don't usually have anything nice to say about it.

But at least they're trying. At the end of January, high-level officials reviewed the dress rehearsals and offered their suggestions for improvements; here are the thoughts of three of them, courtesy of the China News Agency:

Ouyang Jian, deputy director of the Publicity Department: Overall, the dress rehearsal came off well. It gave highlighted festive themes, and all the necessary elements were present. There were frequent high points among the rich material.

Hu Zhanfan, vice minister at SARFT: Hu thanked the cast and crew for their efforts. He felt that the rehearsal met with expectations. His recommendations:

1. Language should be closely managed. Care should be taken to make sure that the hosts' introductory material and the skit segments use correct, appropriate, and decent language. Pop songs should maintain a healthy tone;
2. Dance numbers should be striking: create brilliant, important, and classic segments;
3. Refine the skit segments to increase their overall effect;
4. Improve the costuming of non-professional performers;
5. Heighten the atmosphere to increase visual impact and foster interactivity.

Zhao Huayong, president of CCTV:

1. Improve the lighting effects and take more care in camera positioning and scene framing;
2. Use the entire stage to open up the performance;
3. Visuals on the big screens should better complement the action on the stage;
4. Performers in spoken word segments should be more expressive; design and costuming of dance and acrobatics numbers needs to be improved;
5. Transitions between segments should be smooth; countdown dialogue before midnight should be carefully planned out;
6. Improve cast and crew management, heighten discipline, and strengthen follow-through.

In an article posted at China Elections & Governance, Daniel Bell notes the recent decline in viewership, and suggests that political satire might be the way to restore the Gala's lost luster. But that would be a complete reversal from the current politics of the Gala:

Not surprisingly, the show also serves a political purpose. It is meant to unify Chinese speakers across the world, including overseas Chinese. The past few years have included skits involving Hong Kong and Taiwan performers, and there are shots of Spring Festival parties in other parts of the globe. It is also meant to solidify support for the Chinese Communist Party. At the end of last year's show – the countdown right before midnight – the screen flashed images of CCP leaders, from Mao Zedong to Hu Jintao. Perhaps the idea is that the love shown to family members during the holiday season should be extended to the "father-figures" in the party.

Could political satire be injected into this feel-good atmosphere? The Gala is a cash cow for CCTV; if viewership continues to decline, would the network be forced to adapt to the tastes of its audience?