China's got talent - and its own Susan Boyle
| Beijing
When Cai Hongping, a Shanghai market stall holder, offered to sing a song for two young customers if they bought enough of her chicken feet, she may scarcely have expected that she was launching herself on the path to national stardom.
But someone filmed her stirring rendition of 鈥淎mazing Grace鈥� on video and posted it on 鈥淵ukou,鈥� the Chinese clone of YouTube. (, she starts singing about 3:30)
She certainly had a striking soprano voice. She also had girlish pigtails, a warm smile, and a fetching pink Hello Kitty apron. Within 10 days the video had attracted 10 million hits, a Chinese record for such a short span of time.
That was in March 2010. Last Sunday, Ms. Cai 鈥� calling herself 鈥淪weet Cauliflower Mum鈥� 鈥� came in second on the 鈥淐hina鈥檚 Got Talent鈥� reality TV show.
So far, so Susan Boyle. But there was a twist. Cai has only a middle school education, so her English is not so hot and her Italian is nonexistent. Which posed a problem, since she wanted to sing 鈥淣essun Dorma,鈥� the famous aria from Puccini鈥檚 opera 鈥淭urandot.鈥�
So she made up her own words. In Chinese. Words that resonated with her own life.
Where Pavarotti, sticking to the original libretto, sang (in Italian) 鈥淓ven you, O Princess, in your cold room, watch the stars that tremble with love and hope,鈥� Sweet Cauliflower Mum sang 鈥淐hicken legs, chicken wings, duck legs, duck wings, carrots, tomatoes, and Chinese onions, come and buy them; Chinese onions for free!鈥� ()
鈥淚 still don鈥檛 know the song鈥檚 real lyrics, and I don鈥檛 know how to sing them in Chinese,鈥� Cai confessed to the talent show judges. 鈥淏ut I thought that if I rewrote the lyrics with the names of my vegetables, all my friends and ordinary Chinese people could understand. That might be better.鈥�
