'My kind of town'
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Shanghai is not only home to transsexual dancer Jin Xing, but also to a host of other independent minded and experimental artists.
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Transsexual dancer and choreographer Jin Xing in a performance. |
"Shanghai is my kind of town," says 43-year-old transsexual dancer and choreographer Jin Xing, who has made her home in the city because of its avant-garde approach to the arts. Jin bowed out of Beijing and moved to Shanghai when she was promised access to mainstream venues and freedom from the capital city's political and social restrictions. She says Shanghai's burgeoning art scene, fringe theaters and open attitude is like "a sea that accepts a hundred rivers".
She adds that Shanghai attracts talents that are often anti-establishment, such as social and political critics.
For example, there is writer, blogger and publisher Han Han, a high-school dropout who often makes sly digs at the government and recently praised a corrupt official for his thrifty ways - as he only gave his mistresses mobile phones rather than big money.
The 36-year-old Zhang Jun is a graduate of business administration at Shanghai's Jiaotong University, but decided to pursue a career in Kunqu Opera.
The suave reformist, with his signature punk hairdo and rhinestone-studded denim jacket, formed his own troupe with the aim of revitalizing the "mother of all Chinese operas."
In doing so, he stirred a storm of controversy among traditionalists by "introducing modern marketing concepts into an ancient art form" that is facing extinction.
Qian Wenzhong's talks on China Central Television's Lecture Room have made him a celebrity in Shanghai.
The Fudan University professor revels in controversy and is known for his taste in designer clothes, fine foods and expensive cars. Although he is not a Shanghai native, he's widely accepted as one of the city's favorite sons.
Zhou Libo, on the other hand, has become popular because he has promoted Shanghai culture, by making jokes in his native Shanghai dialect. The comedian has made a fortune from sponsorship deals in China's financial center.
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