"Chinese Dance Chronicle (Hebei Volume)"

Author: Editorial Committee of This Book
Publisher:
Publishing Time: 2002-10-01
Features: The magnificent and long-standing culture of the Chinese nation has always attracted people both within and outside China with its unique charm. Among its artistic expressions, dance is particularly filled with the mystery and beauty of the East. This book provides the best channel for understanding Eastern dance art. As you immerse yourself in the ocean of dance art, you will truly feel the lightness and grace of Chinese dance, the fervor and passion of its performances. We believe this book will bring you endless delightful enjoyment.
The feudal society was governed by the common moral principle of "revering heaven and honoring ancestors," with the theoretical basis being "all things originate from heaven, and people originate from ancestors." The long-term promotion and advocacy by feudal rulers of "the mandate of heaven" and "governing the world through filial piety" were its political manifestations. This theory sought to voluntarily place the ruled under the dual rule of divine authority and political power, urging them to revere heaven and uphold ancestral traditions, thereby forming a widespread social psychology. It constrained people's thoughts and stifled their creative instincts, becoming a reaction against social development. However, folk dance, in particular, had a dual nature. On one hand, the social psychology of revering deities allowed some ancient folk dance forms to survive due to their practical value in rituals. On the other hand, rituals were a subservient part of feudal etiquette, naturally excluding the aesthetic value of folk dance. Thus, the protection of certain folk dance forms was, in essence, a form of suppression.
Take the ancient dance form of "Magu" from Cizhou, for example. It has survived from the Northern Wei Dynasty to the present day largely because of its practical value in rituals. As a result, its aesthetic value has been confined and suppressed by rituals. Even after 1,500 years, it can still only play the role of "beating Magu drums on one side" and struggles to stand as an independent dance. Its counterpart, "Caiwei," while we lack sufficient evidence to confirm its origins in the Northern Dynasties, is undeniably ancient. It was an art form that survived by rituals and disappeared with the decline of rituals. Only recently, after being rediscovered, has it reappeared in Spring Festival activities, but its dance score (veil score) is a reproduction from 1884. Such an ancient and rigid dance form, though it can boost the grandeur of Spring Festival flower shows with its colorful veils and peculiar shapes, struggles to evoke aesthetic resonance among contemporary audiences.
As early as the "Liezi·Shuo Fu," it was recorded that the "Gaqiao" (high-platform dance), which once thrived in acrobatics and Song Dynasty dance troupes, had a long history. Although it had begun to transition from pure skill to artistic expression, its long-standing role in folk rituals meant that most of its performances remained at a low level, with their aesthetic functions never fully realized. Despite later additions of numerous roles and theatrical-style costumes that mimicked opera, these roles rarely had, amounting to little more than a loose assembly of individual performers. "Seeing skill but not emotion" is a common ailment among most Gaqiao performances in Hebei. By today's dance definitions, it can only be considered a disorganized troupe of various role performances, a situation that is widespread in Hebei and far from isolated.
The moral norms of the feudal system made folk dancers inevitably focus more on the ritual functions of dance. This ritual-centric dance concept meant that even when folk dance was performed purely for entertainment, it could not transcend the psychological limits of most dancers and audiences. This is the primary reason why the aesthetic value of folk dance in Hebei has struggled to be realized. Naturally, the purely amateur nature of folk dance—performances and rehearsals lasting only once a year, for a month or more at most, and a few days at minimum—has also been a major factor hindering the long-term development of its aesthetic functions.
After the Republic of China, the "Jidong Di Yangge" (Jidong Earth God Dance) emphasized "Chuzi" (performers stepping out). Its themes were mostly about love between men and women. But this phenomenon