China is sensitive to anything that may blacken the image of its cultural masterpieces, including traditional medicine, kungfu and Beijing Opera, as evidenced by the withdrawal of a Starbucks coffee house from the Forbidden City in 2007 due to popular pressure.

Some internet users have expressed guarded optimism that their modern adaption and pioneering role of bringing together Chinese and western cultures will help revive ancient art forms which have suffered a sharp decline in popularity as the modern audience grows more absorbed in (often international) digital entertainment. They also chided the performance for the amateur dramatics of the bikini girls who obviously had no clear idea of how the ancient opera should be performed.

C羅的小弟 wrote: “It is a cultural innovation, right? The national treasure is not used for worship alone. It should keep abreast of the world and develop itself. “

In addition, they mocked the cultural anxiety of their opponents, saying that the nationalistic sentiment, an accompaniment to the expanding economy and growing international status, has become a dominant force and blinded them to the fact that a closed mind will do nothing but hamper the spread of the Chinese culture.

“To spawn cultural innovation, we have to try new things. If everyone doesn’t like it, it will be displaced naturally. The point is that we must have a pioneering spirit, or our culture will not move forward.” said 饅頭的圍脖.

Many other Chinese traditional elements, such as cheongsam and blue-and-white porcelain, were used as accessories or props in the past contests, Li said.

“Bikini belongs to the west. Combining Chinese and western cultures is a huge task. We still have much work to do to fathom the depth of Chinese culture and express our culture in a meaningful way.” he said.

By Xu Xinlei

Contact the writer at xuxinlei@chinadaily.com.cn.