/'_/\ /'_/| | \ `\ | | | ______ | `\ `\ | | | ______ /'______/\ | |\ `\ `| | | /______/\ | ___ \/| | | |\ `\| | | | ___ \ \ | /'/ \_|/ | | | `\ | | | | | \ \/| | | | __ |_|/' `\__|/' | | | | | | | | \__/_/| | | |__| | | | \/___| |/ China News Digest | |/__/ |/ \_______/(InfoBase June 4 Collection)|_______/ May 13, 1993 **The CND InfoBase Project collects, among other China-related information, materials and/or bibliographical reference to matericals about the Beijing Massacre on June 4, 1989. Please refer to the trailer for more information. No. Subject june3-89.11t # of Lines --------------------------------------------------------------------------- 1. HEADLINE: 'IMPERIAL BELLS' TO RING IN ORANGE COUNTY ................. 90 2. HEADLINE: PEKING RESIDENTS, STUDENTS REPEL APPARANT MOVE ON TIANANMEN .......................................................... 111 --------------------------------------------------------------------------- 1. HEADLINE: 'IMPERIAL BELLS' TO RING IN ORANGE COUNTY ................. 90 --------------------------------------------------------------------------- SOURCE: Los Angeles Times, June 3, 1989, Saturday, Home Edition BYLINE: By ROBYN TAYLOR The ancient music and dance of the Chinese Imperial Court will be re-created at the Orange County Performing Arts Center today and Sunday in a 10-act show called "The Imperial Bells of China. " Sixty-five of the 200 members of the Hubei Song and Dance Ensemble, the official performance troupe in the central China province of Hubei, will wind up a two-month tour of the United States with the two shows here. (Shows in Los Angeles and Oxnard were to follow the Orange County performances, but they have been canceled. A press spokesman blamed the cancellations on poor advance ticket sales and said that the student -led demonstrations in Beijing for increased freedom were not a factor.) "Imperial Bells of China" was inspired by the discovery of more than 10,000 artifacts, including 120 ancient instruments, during an archeological dig in Hubei province in 1978. A tomb of a Chinese nobleman, Marquis Yi, was found "and in the chamber, 64 bells were discovered, along with drums, string harps, and chimes," said Richard Lukens, president of Los Angeles-based China Business Management, which is producing the touring show. The bronze bells are thought to be the oldest fixed-pitched instruments ever found. Weighing as much as 600 pounds and as tall as 5 feet, the bells are on display in a museum in the Wuhan area of China and regarded by the Chinese as one of the wonders of the world, Lukens said. "The troupe felt it was their duty to re-create this ancient music." But this was no easy task. The ensemble began researching and developing the show eight years ago and it took three years to complete the groundwork. In addition, each musician designed and constructed his own instrument, modeled after the original. The end result is a re-creation of "the cultural, political and social life of the Chinese people 2,400 years ago," Lukens said. The entire show is in Chinese except for recorded commentaries by actor Gregory Peck, who provides descriptions of each scene and translations of the ancient poetic lyrics. Peck is a longtime supporter of cultural exchange between the East and West. His interest in the show was sparked during a trip to China a year and a half ago, when he saw a documentary in Shanghai about the bells. "I was fascinated and completely taken," Peck said. "It was a new vision into Chinese song. I offered to provide an English translation of the film and submit it to the Academy (of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences) in the documentary category. But the show was even better," he said. "It's just a glimpse into the artistry and creativity of the Chinese, drawing on ancient culture, poetry, and folk tales." Lukens, former international director of Live Aid, became interested in continuing his involvement with cross-cultural exchange events while working on Live Aid in Beijing. While there, he met his future wife and co-producer of the show, Erin Wang-Lukens, the daughter of a Chinese official. "I wanted to produce some sort of Chinese show in the United States, and the Minister of Culture showed me some of the shows available. I thought this troupe was special." With the help of Wang's family connections with the Ministry of Culture and the Chinese government, Lukens brought "Imperial Bells of China" to the United States, continuing his commitment to help bring countries together through the arts, he said. Lui Youcai, one of two leaders of the ensemble, is thrilled with the American audience's response to the show. "They love it, but we have much to learn about America outside of performing here," Lui said. The music director of the troupe, Peng Xian Cheng, welcomed the opportunity to tour the United States: "It's on the other side of the earth. We are used to the crowds of China, and America is a great big land. "This type of cultural exchange is important," he said, adding he hopes to introduce the show all over the world. "This kind of tour shows friendship between the countries." GRAPHIC: Photo, Erin Wang-Lukens and Richard Lukens, co-producers of "The Imperial Bells of China" show. LARRY SALZMAN; Photo, (Orange County Edition) Richard Lukens is producer of the 10-act touring show, "The Imperial Bells of China, " left. ROBERT GABRIEL / Los Angeles Times CHINA -- HISTORY; ARTIFACTS; MUSICAL INSTRUMENTS; CULTURAL EXCHANGES; ARTS -- CHINA; MUSIC --------------------------------------------------------------------------- 2. HEADLINE: PEKING RESIDENTS, STUDENTS REPEL APPARANT MOVE ON TIANANMEN .......................................................... 111 --------------------------------------------------------------------------- SOURCE: The Reuter Library Report, June 3, 1989, Saturday, PM cycle BYLINE: By William Kazer DATELINE: PEKING, June 3 Thousands of Chinese troops made a lightning push towards Peking's Tiananmen Square in the early hours of Saturday but residents barred their way in dozens of spots and sent them retreating in disarray, witnesses said. The troops approached from four directions but got no nearer than some 200 metres (yards) from the ragtag tent city set up by pro-democracy student demonstrators three weeks ago. In scene after scene, passionate Peking residents abused, berated and at times assaulted the hapless troops, interrogating individuals and heaping shame on busloads of soldiers. "We came here to restore order, we were obeying orders. People of Peking do not understand us," one soldier pleaded to a crowd east of Tiananmen. "We do understand you. We do not need you here," answered a young woman crouching nearby. By daybreak, central Peking was a remarkable sight, with some troops still straggling off in small groups, while others waited helplessly around army buses with flat tyres and smashed windows. In lively clusters and large groups, students, workers and soldiers talked, smoked and exchanged opinions. During the early morning push, four cyclists were struck by a police jeep leading a convoy of military buses about four km (three miles) west of Tiananmen, witnesses said. Doctors and ambulance drivers said two of them were killed and two injured. State television news said an army jeep had struck four cyclists early on Saturday and three had died. The broadcast did not mention the convoy of troops and said the jeep was heading toward a ceremony when the accident occurred. Several soldiers were injured during the night and at least one was seen being carried away by his comrades. The soldiers' exact strategy was not clear but witnesses said the approach was made at a high speed with some of the troops in buses and others on foot. One Western diplomat said some 10,000 troops were believed involved in the aborted strike. These figures could not be independently confirmed but witnesses saw long columns of soldiers and large numbers of buses in several approaches to Tiananmen. Most did not appear to be armed but angry citizens produced several guns, bayonets and truncheons they said had been taken from assorted support vehicles that were stopped along with the troops. Near the venerable Beijing Hotel, a few hundred metres (yards) from the square, students displayed daggers and a noose they said were taken from the soldiers. A Western diplomat quoted a Chinese military source as saying the plan had been for the troops to encircle Tiananmen, and that then the People's Armed Police, a special unit, would enter the square to remove students. Most of the soldiers refused to talk about their mission but they were defensive about their jobs. "If the trouble-makers continue, how can China complete her reforms?" one of them asked a crowd. In one neighbourhood west of the square, frightened soldiers huddled in a bus, pushing against windows which furious residents were trying to open. "Are you human? Are you Chinese? Do you have a conscience?" the civilians shouted. In another spot, residents stripped the soldiers of their knapsacks and rooted through them searching for noodles but many other witnesses reported more gentle citizens sharing cigarettes and ideas with the soldiers. Wang Dan, a prominent leader of the pro-democracy students, said on Saturday: "The awareness of the public was very high. That was the reason why they couldn't get us." But he said China's leaders were stubborn and predicted more of the same. As lines of soldiers ambled away, some residents shouted "Don't come back tonight." Peking's communist leaders have condemned the student occupation of Tiananmen since it began and have grown increasingly shrill in recent days, orchestrating their own pro-government rallies and accusing the pro-democracy movement of fomenting chaos. The use of soldiers to clear the square of the students, whose numbers range between a few thousand overnght to tens of thousands during evening hours, was widely predicted when the occupation began. Loss of control over Tiananmen, the symbolic centre of Chinese communism, has embarrassed the country's leaders and their humiliation reached a peak this week when the students unveiled a 10-metre (30-foot) replica of New York's Statue of Liberty. But the nation's leaders appear to be locked in their own power struggle, with supreme leader Deng Xiaoping and hardline Premier Li Peng on one side and Communist Party chairman Zhao Ziyang, whom they have reportedly blamed for the present unrest, on the other. Martial law, declared in parts of Peking on May 20, has had little apparent affect, and martial law media regulations issued on Thursday ordering a virtual news blackout have been largely ignored. +--------------------------------------------------------------------------+ | Executive Editor: Bing Wen in Ottawa, Canada | +--------------------------------------------------------------------------+ | China News Digest (CND) InfoBase covers the following areas: | | History : WWII, Cultural Revolution, June 4, Olympics | | Service : visa/PR, PRC-doc, tax, insurance, travel/living | | Academics : job, conference/workshop, societies, projects | | Other : org intro, book review, community activities | | ------ * ------ * ------ | | To contribute, please send to CND-IB@CND.ORG | +--------------------------------------------------------------------------+