TV Show Digest
27 female internet contestants are filtered from innumerable applications to get an opportunity in Youku’s historical drama. Liu Tao is the director of the show. Panellists and guests include Zhang Xiao Long, Yan Yi Kuan, Joe Cheng, Zhan Zhe Han, Aarif Rahman, Bai Ke Li, Gong Jun, and others. The participants are introduced to rigorous training and guided by acting coaches on regular dramatic exercises. The Actor’s Academy and the audience judge them before making the final decision.
The Feel-Good Part
You can roughly carve out the methodology of their training. The performances of the contestants create an atmosphere of energy and passion. As the show moves on, the pressure of drawing attention to their acting skills is visible.
The Disappointing Factor
The show receives paramount criticism for its horrendous action against amateur female participants. Rather than focusing on acting and nurturing their talents, it mainly judges them by dancing. While dancing is an important aspect of the show but its domineering presence compared to acting devoid the meaning of the show. Even the panellists and guests, comprising mostly male, except for Liu Tao, have questionable acting skills. It is odd that in a show for choosing actresses, the only prominent female mentor is the dean or director of the show. The gender disparity can be noticed here. It is still disheartening to see this kind of show getting access to get broadcasted on television and gaining publicity, where women are victimized in broad daylight.
In-Depth Analysis
Dramas and shows are not only for entertainment purposes, but it also plays a significant role in spreading social messages in a community. But the ability to register a problem is broken down because of the existence of shows such as this. The presence of mostly male panellists and show guests in training the female actors vividly represents the notion of the dominant male. In grooming the contestants, the boundary of professionalism is often crossed when the judges themselves physically harness the competitor(s) in the name of acting out scenes. Airing extremely uncomfortable scenes as a part of local television dramas is itself problematic. It can be strongly derived from this notion that these kinds of aspects are normalized so much in society that the public audience, let alone the judges, remain mute when a panellist engages in tremendous inappropriate physical contact with a female contestant. Whether it is meant to demean the ability of women to emerge as professional actresses or holding the show for the satisfaction of unknown purposes, it truly breaks down the facade of morality.
Star Power
The competitors gave their best and attempted to render fitting performances. Duan Xiao Wei, Zhu Dan Ni, Cao Fei Ran, Gao Rong Fang, Cao Sai Ya, Heart Cheng, Cui Zhen, Han Pei Ying, Huang Si Rui, Qu Meng Ru, and others held the show together by presenting the best of their efforts.
Overall Opinion
Over the growing uncomfortably factor, the show received huge criticisms from netizens. Despite having a group of competitive and zealous participants, the misconduct of the show hampered its importance.
