The film traces the revolution from the May Fourth Movement[1] to the Civil War against the Nationalist Party, culminating in the Communist victory and the founding of the People's Republic of China (PRC).
By the end of 1960, the Air Political and Cultural Troupe sent songwriters including Zhang Shixie, Zhu Jianyuan, Yao Xuecheng, Chen Jie, etc.
[3] After Zhou Enlai saw "Revolutionary History Songs Singing" and "Singing Forward under the Banner of Mao Zedong", on July 30, 1964, Zhou convened the relevant officials at a meeting in Xi Hua Hall, Zhong Nan Hai, and made the final decision about launching the musical concert project, and this concert was named as "The East Is Red" during the meeting.
On October 2, 1964, The East is Red was performed for the first time in the Great Hall of the People in Beijing on the 15th anniversary of the National day.
[6] The East Is Red depicts the history of the Chinese Communist Party under Mao Zedong from its founding in July 1921 to the establishment of the People's Republic of China in 1949.
The East Is Red is divided into the following named stages: The prelude "Sunflowers Face the Sun", followed by "Dawn of the East", "A Spark Ignites a Prairie Fire", "Ten Thousand Crags and Torrents", "Beacon of Anti-Japanese Resistance", "Bury the Chiang Family Dynasty", and "The Chinese People Have Stood Up".
At the meeting, Jiang Qing expressed her own opinion: "I am very worried about turning this large-scale music and dance epic into a film, because The East is Red is not cohesive and coherent enough, the artistic effect is flat, and the revolutionary optimism is not prominent enough.
Singers featured in the film include Wang Kun, Tseten Dolma, Hu Songhua, and Guo Lanying.
[11] The first stage, "Dawn of the East", starts with a long dance segment depicting the "Years of Suffering" preceding the PRC from subjugation under foreign influences and social divide.
It features the songs "Three Rules of Discipline and Eight Points for Attention (三大纪律八项注意)" and "Fighting Against the Local Tyrants and Dividing the Land", which describes the people's complaints against their enemies.
[12] The third stage, the song "Ten Thousand Crags and Torrents" highlights the Chinese Red Army of workers and peasants as they pass the time while trekking the difficult journey of the 9,000 km Long March through singing and dancing.
[13] The fourth stage, "Beacon of Anti-Japanese Resistance", shows the plight of the Chinese people in the Second Sino-Japanese War since the Mukden incident, which consists of five parts.
Among them, the songs "Unity is Power (团结就是力量)" and "Not Afraid to Go to Jail (坐牢算什么)" show that the CCP has vowed to come together and defend the oppressed people of China.
[14] The sixth stage, "The Chinese People Have Stood Up", introduced the singing of the national anthem "March of the Volunteers (义勇军进行曲)" and the song "Without the Communist Party, There Would Be No New China (没有共产党就没有新中国)".