Mr. Ai is directing the whole River Crab incident, which is no different from a mass gymnastics.

The serving of the crab was the most exciting point of the evening, symbolizing for many their stubborn protest of Chinese censorship and support for political activism (River Crab in Chinese is a homonym for harmony - 河蟹 v. 和谐, and a popular euphemism for censorship in China.)

Mr. Ai planned to serve river crabs — a sly reference to the Mandarin word hexie, which means both river crab and harmonious. Among critics of China’s censorship regime, hexie has become a buzzword for opposition to the government’s call to create a harmonious society, free from dissent.