The promotion of national cultural heritage: Beijing Opera in Chinese social media

The role of social media in preserving of intangible cultural heritage is analyzed in this paper. The subject matter is the Art of Beijing Opera, included in the UNESCO's List of Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity. The purpose of the article is to study examples of demonstrating the art of Beijing Opera on the Douyin platform from the traditional arts presentation authenticity in the Chinese blogosphere point of view. The empirical grounds of the research were videos posted on the Douyin platform on behalf of the authors: Guo Xiaojing (果小菁); Guo Yuan (郭雨昂); Beijing Opera Liu Lei (爱京剧), I Love Beijing Opera 13 (爱京剧13), etc. The research methodology includes historical and cultural approach, comparative analysis and content analysis. The study showed that the short video format is popular among Internet users. The uploaded content is dedicated to various aspects of the art of Beijing Opera: plots, music, makeup, costume, etc. The authors of the videos not only show scenes from performances, the rehearsal process, preparation for performances, but also talk about the history of the genre, outstanding performers, and reveal the meaning of what is happening on stage. Thus, bloggers are involved in cultural and educational activities. In addition, the use of 3D technologies and VR effects, the combination of traditional performing practices with modern popular music, and the rejection of traditional age standarts and limits for performers contribute to the renewal of Beijing Opera and its integration into the modern cultural space. From the national and cultural identity formation and support point of view, such capacities of online communications are great importance. However, the quality of online content and the ability of social media to convey information about a phenomenon while maintaining its authenticity, original aesthetic and semantic essence is open to question. The analysis showed that the video content represents only partial aspects of the art of Beijing Opera (a separate musical scene or dramatic action, makeup application, hair styling, textual reference, the daily life of the actors-performers, etc.). Traditional artistic practice is not covered as a holistic phenomenon, but in bits and pieces. The identified contradiction reflects the general trend of the cultural heritage existence in the digital age. The authors declare no conflicts of interests.

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