Download
Zhan Lige is a devoted unprofessional. He simply loves his local traditional square dance.
His love for the Manchurian Yangko dates back more than three decades, when he was 4 years old and still lived in a village near Fushun, Liaoning province.
"Our Manchurian Yangko is a popular square dance in many places. Whenever there is festivity or a fair, we go all out and dance," the 38-year-old traffic management worker says. "And when there is dancing, you'll know the spirits are high."
He calls it a dance of emotions, or more precisely, a dance for ebullience.
"Dance to us is like drinking wine. You dance and shed all your worries. It's pure enjoyment."
Compared to the authentic Manchurian Yangko, the square dance has been stripped of most traditional roles and rituals. In the original, there would be two dancers in yellow hoodies and red skirts. They salute each other before letting the group gather information, like a bagua (eight diagram tactics). Dancers then mimic taking in the battlefield and begin dancing in pairs, competing against each other, until a horsetail whip signals the end of the dance, explains Zhan.
The passionate Yangko dance is also one of the nation's intangible cultural heritage items, which tells the story of crusading Manchurians on horseback. For the square dance, the same eight major moves (including charging, leaping, thumping and squatting) mimicking soldiers is the thing to watch.
"Everyone can do it after watching for a bit," says Zhan, who now heads an amateur Manchurian Yangko troupe of 50 people. The group made to the finals of the Galaxy Awards. The troupe practices every week.
"There is no set music and no demanding moves, we dance for hours because we get into a trance," he says. "It's so simple, and all you need for a prop is a fan or handkerchief."
"The state we all desire is this - you dance but you forget you're dancing and go blank," he says. "While people watch us because the dance is uplifting, we are dancing because we are led by feelings from our leaping hearts."
About the broadcaster:
Anne Ruisi is an editor at China Daily online with more than 30 years of experience as a newspaper editor and reporter. She has worked at newspapers in the U.S., including The Birmingham News in Alabama and City Newspaper of Rochester, N.Y.
英语四级阅读理解练习及答案详解(27)
12月四级考试阅读长难句精讲精练-第7讲
四级考试阅读高频词汇分类总结科技类
英语四级考试阅读理解基础练习题十一
12月四级考试阅读长难句精讲精练-第19讲
12月四级考试阅读长难句精讲精练-第15讲
12月四级考试阅读长难句精讲精练-第1讲
英语四级考试阅读理解基础练习题五
12月四级考试阅读长难句精讲精练-第4讲
英语四级阅读理解练习及答案详解(29)
英语四级考试阅读理解基础练习题八
四级考试阅读高频词汇分类总结医学类
12月四级考试阅读长难句精讲精练-第11讲
英语四级阅读理解练习及答案详解(10)
英语四级考试阅读理解基础练习题二十
英语四级阅读理解练习及答案详解(7)
12月四级考试阅读长难句精讲精练-第14讲
英语四级考试阅读理解基础练习题十八
英语四级阅读理解练习及答案详解(3)
12月四级考试阅读长难句精讲精练-第12讲
12月四级考试阅读长难句精讲精练-第2讲
英语四级考试阅读理解基础练习题六
英语四级阅读理解练习及答案详解(13)
12月四级考试阅读长难句精讲精练-第10讲
四级考试阅读高频词汇分类总结娱乐类
12月四级考试阅读长难句精讲精练-第9讲
12月四级考试阅读长难句精讲精练-第16讲
英语四级阅读理解练习及答案详解(1)
英语四级考试阅读理解基础练习题九
四级考试阅读高频词汇分类总结工作类
不限 |
英语教案 |
英语课件 |
英语试题 |
不限 |
不限 |
上册 |
下册 |
不限 |