介绍： China shows off kung fu robots in new year celebrations
From: The Times
Last year the break-out hit from Chinese television's New Year's Eve gala was a troupe of dancing robots.
The country's modern success has been built on the advantages of scale, so it was hardly surprising that this year robots were not a...

介绍： China shows off kung fu robots in new year celebrations
From: The Times
Last year the break-out hit from Chinese television's New Year's Eve gala was a troupe of dancing robots.
The country's modern success has been built on the advantages of scale, so it was hardly surprising that this year robots were not an incidental feature but took over the whole show.
They danced, they did a comedy sketch about grandmother-like behaviour, they did kung fu, and they did the thing most human artistes fear most — performed with children.
Nor was their appearance just for fun. The importance of the gala, annually the most-watched show in the world, is such that the companies behind the robots paid tens of millions of yuan for the chance to show off their wares.
“Chunwan”, as the China Media Group Spring Festival Gala is informally known, was an invention of state television only as far back as 1983. Since then, it has gone from being a cheesy light entertainment show to being a major showcase for the culture of the People's Republic.
Approved foreign performers are now also invited: Monday night's show featured John Legend, Westlife and Lionel Richie.
However, it was well advertised in advance that after the success of last year's troupe of robots, who performed a traditional dance with live humans, this year's would be robot-focused.
Unitree, the company that produced 2025's dancers, received worldwide publicity. This year, Unitree was joined by three other firms — MagicLab, Galbot and Noetix, who each paid an estimated £6 million for a slot.
However, it was still Unitree that provided the stand-out performance, a complex martial arts routine in which the robots performance was cheered on by yellow-clad “kung fu kids” who then joined in. The robots were clearly far more confident than 2025's rather wooden stars — they span, high-kicked, twirled nunchuks and even back-flipped.
Official figures showed that the show was watched live by 677 million people, with more than 13 billion individual hits on social media. The shopping website JD.com reported that searches for robots online surged by 300 per cent in the two hours after the show.
troupe /truːp/
n. 剧团，表演队
The circus troupe amazed the audience with their acrobatics.
这个马戏团用杂技表演让观众惊叹不已。
incidental /ˌɪnsɪˈdentl/
adj. 附带的，次要的
These expenses are incidental to the main project.
这些开支对主要项目来说是附带性的。
show off /ʃoʊ ɒf/
v. 展示，炫耀
He bought a new sports car to show off to his friends.
他买了辆新跑车向朋友们炫耀。
cheesy /ˈtʃiːzi/
adj. 俗气的，廉价的
The movie's special effects looked cheap and cheesy.
这部电影的特效看起来廉价又俗气。
showcase /ˈʃoʊkeɪs/
n. 展示平台，陈列柜
The art gallery is a showcase for local painters.
这家美术馆是本地画家的展示平台。
slot /slɑːt/
n. 位置，时间段
She booked a slot at the hair salon for Saturday morning.
她预约了周六早上去美发沙龙的时间。