Spring Festival Gala

春晚

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Synopsis

The Spring Festival Gala, also known as the CCTV Spring Festival Gala, has been broadcast annually on Chinese New Year's Eve since 1983 and is the most-watched television program in China. Watching the Spring Festival Gala has become an inseparable part of Chinese New Year celebrations. Its highest viewership rating reached 96% (in 1998). Sketches and crosstalk are the most popular types of performances. "Unforgettable Tonight" serves as the closing song each year. The Spring Festival Gala is certified by Guinness World Records as the world's most-watched television program.

Overview

The Spring Festival Gala, also known as the CCTV Spring Festival Gala, is China's most-watched and most influential television program. Since its inaugural broadcast in 1983, it has been aired punctually at 8 PM on Chinese New Year's Eve every year, lasting approximately four and a half hours. The Gala has a global reach—broadcast live simultaneously through various CCTV channels and online platforms, attracting over one billion viewers worldwide. In China, watching the Spring Festival Gala has become one of the most important rituals on New Year's Eve—after the family reunion dinner, gathering around the television to watch the Gala together has become an inseparable part of Chinese New Year celebrations.

The Spring Festival Gala is a miracle in the history of Chinese television—it has been broadcast continuously for over forty years, making it one of the longest-running variety shows in the world. The Gala features a variety of performances, including singing, dancing, skits, cross-talk, magic, acrobatics, and traditional opera, aiming to cater to the preferences of audiences of all ages. Although its viewership has declined in recent years due to the rise of the internet and short videos, the Gala remains a shared memory and topic of conversation for Chinese people on New Year's Eve.

Key Milestones

Year	Milestone
1983	The inaugural Spring Festival Gala aired, directed by Huang Yihe
1984	Zhang Mingmin performed "My Chinese Heart," marking the first appearance of a Hong Kong/Taiwan singer on the Gala
1987	Fei Xiang performed "A Fire in Winter," captivating the nation
1990	Zhao Benshan debuted on the Gala, ushering in the "King of Skits" era
1998	Peak viewership reached 96.1%
2005	"Thousand-Hand Guanyin" stunned the nation, led by Tai Lihua
2009	Xiao Shenyang skyrocketed to fame overnight with "Not Short of Money"
2012	Celine Dion and Song Zuying performed a duet of "Jasmine Flower"
2020	First Gala recorded without a live audience due to the COVID-19 pandemic

Classic Performances

Type	Classic Performance	Performer(s)	Year
Song	My Chinese Heart	Zhang Mingmin	1984
Song	A Fire in Winter	Fei Xiang	1987
Song	Unforgettable Tonight	Li Guyi	Annually since 1984
Skit	Eating Noodles	Chen Peisi, Zhu Shimao	1984
Skit	Selling Crutches Series	Zhao Benshan, Fan Wei	2001-2005
Skit	Not Short of Money	Zhao Benshan, Xiao Shenyang	2009
Skit	The Overpopulation Guerrilla	Huang Hong, Song Dandan	1990
Dance	Thousand-Hand Guanyin	Tai Lihua et al.	2005
Cross-talk	Universe Brand Cigarettes	Ma Ji	1984

"Unforgettable Tonight" is the most iconic song of the Spring Festival Gala. Since the second Gala in 1984, this song has almost always been the grand finale—when Li Guyi's voice fills the air, it signals the approaching chimes of the New Year and the end of the Gala. This song has become the deepest memory of Chinese New Year's Eve for the Chinese people. The lyrics, "The green mountains remain, and people never grow old," express the Chinese people's cherished values of family love and reunion.

The King of Skits: Zhao Benshan

Item	Details
Name	Zhao Benshan
Gala Experience	1990-2011, performed for 21 consecutive years
Representative Works	Selling Crutches, Not Short of Money, Yesterday, Today, Tomorrow
Titles	King of Skits, Eastern Charlie Chaplin
Influence	Defined the golden age of Chinese skits

Zhao Benshan is the most influential performer in the history of the Spring Festival Gala. From 1990 to 2011, he performed on the Gala stage for 21 consecutive years, setting a record for Gala appearances. His skits, characterized by Northeastern dialect, vividly portray the joys and sorrows of ordinary people, making audiences both laugh heartily and reflect deeply. Zhao Benshan's skits were almost always the peak viewership moments of the Gala each year.

The Spring Festival Gala and Chinese Society

The Spring Festival Gala is not just a variety show; it is also a mirror reflecting the changes in Chinese society. The Gala in the 1980s was filled with the excitement and hope following the reform and opening-up. The Gala in the 1990s reflected the social changes under rapid economic growth, while the Gala in the new century showcased trends of internationalization and diversification. Catchphrases from the Gala often become hot topics of the year—"Selling Crutches," "Not Short of Money," "Where Has the Time Gone"—these buzzwords created by the Gala reflect the social concerns of their time.

International Influence

The Spring Festival Gala is a shared New Year's Eve ritual for Chinese people worldwide. In Chinatowns and Chinese communities around the world, watching the Gala on New Year's Eve is an important way for overseas Chinese to maintain their cultural traditions. The Gala reaches over 200 countries and regions via satellite and the internet, with an overseas audience exceeding 100 million. The Spring Festival Gala has been certified by Guinness World Records as the world's most-watched television program.