Most of the world know Jackie Chan as the Chinese actor who does all his own stunts in the Rush Hour movies. In Chinese circles he's equally known for his singing ability as much as his acting ability. I recently found out that he is also an active philanthropist and fervent Chinese patriot.
About a week ago James and I attend his charity concert at the Bird Nest. Apparently, it was the first commercial concert to be held at the Bird Nest in celebration of China's May 1st Labor Day. It was definitely a worthwhile experience and absolutely nothing like we imagined it would be!
The event as a whole
- Though it was advertised as a Jackie Chan concert, he mostly served as the MC of honor (if there was such an equivalent position). Amongst his duties included a 5-minute bit in the beginning where he pleaded with the audience to recycle their water bottles and another impromptu 5-minute appearance where he had to jump on stage and stall because they were having some technical difficulties with the sound equipment.
- There is a lot of bantering between the MCs.
- It was amusing to see clips from Harvard's Cultural Rhythms from the time Jackie Chan was the honoree. We did not see J in the clip.
The music
- 90% of the song topics falls into these following topics: I love my country, I love my city, China is great, Charge forward!, The youth is our future
- I discovered a Korean boy band called Super Junior. I am now on the prowl for their CD along with 14-year old Chinese girls.
Bird Nest & Concert Facilities
- 6 circular performance stages surround a large square performance stage. Performances rotated amongst the stages.
- The Bird Nest is too big to hold a concert. As an audience you never feel engaged.
- Upkeep hasn't been the best.
- No lights anywhere! We had to pee and walk down the stairs in darkness.
- To make fog/smoke, they had people walk around the stages with pots harboring an unknown chemical reaction that made smoke. I am certain those fumes were toxic. (Check out the bottom right-hand side of Picture #6)
- Long concession lines (50+ people deep) throughout the whole concert
- Although it is an open-air stadium it was designed such that all the seats are actually covered from any potential weather.
