Liu Qingtang (; 1932 – May 2, 2010) was a Chinese ballet dancer who became famous for playing the role of Hong Changqing in the ballet Red Detachment of Women, one of the

eight model plays In mainland China, revolutionary operas or model operas () were a series of shows planned and engineered during the Cultural Revolution (1966–1976) by Jiang Qing, the wife of Chairman Mao Zedong. They were considered revolutionary and modern ...

during the

Cultural Revolution The Cultural Revolution, formally known as the Great Proletarian Cultural Revolution, was a Social movement, sociopolitical movement in the China, People's Republic of China (PRC). It was launched by Mao Zedong in 1966 and lasted until his de ...

. He was elevated to Vice Minister of Culture in 1975. Liu was born in Gai County,

Liaoning ) , image_skyline = , image_alt = , image_caption = Clockwise: Mukden Palace in Shenyang, Xinghai Square in Dalian, Dalian coast, Yalu River at Dandong , image_map = Liaoning in China (+all claims hatched).svg , ...

Province in 1932. He joined the art troupe of the

People's Liberation Army The People's Liberation Army (PLA) is the military of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) and the People's Republic of China (PRC). It consists of four Military branch, services—People's Liberation Army Ground Force, Ground Force, People's ...

in late 1940s, and after the foundation of the

People's Republic of China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. With population of China, a population exceeding 1.4 billion, it is the list of countries by population (United Nations), second-most populous country after ...

in 1949, he studied ethnic dances and

ballet Ballet () is a type of performance dance that originated during the Italian Renaissance in the fifteenth century and later developed into a concert dance form in France and Russia. It has since become a widespread and highly technical form of ...

Beijing Beijing, Chinese postal romanization, previously romanized as Peking, is the capital city of China. With more than 22 million residents, it is the world's List of national capitals by population, most populous national capital city as well as ...

and the

Soviet Union The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR), commonly known as the Soviet Union, was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 until Dissolution of the Soviet ...

. In 1958, Liu became well known in the ballet circuit in China for his rendition of the prince Ziegfried in

Swan Lake ''Swan Lake'' ( rus, Лебеди́ное о́зеро, r=Lebedínoje ózero, p=lʲɪbʲɪˈdʲinəjə ˈozʲɪrə, links=no ), Op. 20, is a ballet composed by Russian composer Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky in 1875–76. Despite its initial failu ...

. In 1964, Liu was cast as Hong Changqing in Red Detachment of Women. This was a task of more politics than of art, as this work was under the auspices and supervision of

Jiang Qing Jiang Qing (March 191414 May 1991), also known as Madame Mao, was a Chinese communist revolutionary, actress, and political figure. She was the fourth wife of Mao Zedong, the Chairman of the Chinese Communist Party, Chairman of the Communis ...

, wife of

Mao Zedong Mao Zedong pronounced ; traditionally Romanization of Chinese, romanised as Mao Tse-tung. (26December 18939September 1976) was a Chinese politician, revolutionary, and political theorist who founded the People's Republic of China (PRC) in ...

. The film version of the ballet was released in 1971, and Liu became a household name. His prominent quality as a ballet dancer and his political savvy enabled him to make leaps and bounds in his political career as well. In February, 1976, Liu was nominated by

and

Zhang Chunqiao Zhang Chunqiao (; 1 February 1917 – 21 April 2005) was a Chinese political theorist, writer, and politician. He came to the national spotlight during the late stages of the Cultural Revolution, and was a member of the ultra-Maoist group dub ...

for the vice minister of the

Ministry of Culture Ministry of Culture may refer to: * Ministry of Tourism, Cultural Affairs, Youth and Sports (Albania) * Ministry of Culture (Algeria) * Ministry of Culture (Argentina) * Minister for the Arts (Australia) * Ministry of Culture (Azerbaijan)Ministry o ...

. In the early part of the 21st century, Liu Qingtang returned to

and opened a ballet school there. He died in 2010.

References

The man who was Mao's hero

China Daily ''China Daily'' ( zh, s=中国日报, p=Zhōngguó Rìbào) is an English-language daily newspaper owned by the Central Propaganda Department of the Chinese Communist Party. Overview ''China Daily'' has the widest print circulation of any ...

, 2010-12-17. Accessed 2011-04-05. {{DEFAULTSORT:Liu, Qingtang 1932 births 2010 deaths People from Yingkou Male actors from Liaoning Chinese male film actors Chinese male stage actors Chinese male ballet dancers 20th-century Chinese ballet dancers Vice Ministers of the Ministry of Culture of the People's Republic of China