 Brits get bad rap
(China Daily)
Updated: 2008-08-23 10:38 British hip-hop dance group ZooNation is expected to join the Royal Ballet and disabled dance group Candoco in an eight-minute performance as part of the Closing Ceremony tomorrow. The decision, described by London Olympic 2012 organizers as "the best of British, with a range of talent," has triggered controversy. To some, the urban dance squad has nothing to do with the UK. In their minds, hip-hop is essentially from the United States. "The visual language belongs to America and it is something Britain has no particular purchase on," Mail Online said, citing branding expert Peter York. Zheng Xiaojiu, an Olympic researcher with Renmin University, also chimed in with his view: "The United Kingdom is renowned for the culture of gentlemen, and therefore hip hop, a kind of dynamic hot dance, cannot show the depth of its culture."  (China Daily 08/23/2008 page28) |
