66-year-old Yang Liping is still dancing. The dance drama "Peacock" recently came to Shanghai, and she appeared in the winter chapter. With all things withering and silence, she danced with the wind and the snow. This scene made many viewers cry and felt "beautiful and shocking".

The dance drama "Peacock" recently came to Shanghai, and she appeared in the winter chapter. With all things withering and silence, she danced with the wind and the snow. This scene made many viewers cry and felt "beautiful and shocking".

The artistic career of a dancer is often short-lived. Many people have to say goodbye to the stage in their thirties and forties, but the 66-year-old Yang Liping is still slender and her dancing posture is still graceful. In terms of creation, she also keeps pace, and new works come out one after another.

From "Image of Yunnan" to "Peacock", from "House of Flying Daggers" to "The Rite of Spring", Yang Liping has compiled more than a dozen large-scale works and even more small works. Not long ago, her latest work "Image of Jingchu" was unveiled at the Shanghai Grand Theater and participated in the 23rd China Shanghai International Arts Festival. "The Rite of Spring", which has been to Shanghai many times, will also be held at the Shanghai Grand Theater on November 29th and 30th. Presented at Oriental Arts Center.

Yang Liping is always surrounded by the spotlight every time she appears in public. Some people call her the "ageless goddess", some worry about whether she "eats meat", and some question the "large scale" of her works. Whether it was a compliment or a question, she was always sober and relaxed.

She talked about the experience of the American dancer Isadora Duncan. The day after a show, Duncan drank coffee and read the newspaper. One newspaper described her as a "fairy," while another described her as a "witch." The same performance has very different reviews.

"Don't deify me. I'm not a god who doesn't eat fireworks from the world. I love life very much, and my works are also very down-to-earth." Yang Liping said, "And most of those controversies stem from ignorance and following what others say. Art is If you have a personality and perspective, you must trust your own judgment.”

Yang Liping’s old photos

“The Death of a Peacock” is also how a person faces death

Shangguan News: Your red dress is so beautiful and elegant.

Yang Liping: Is a bit too grand? This is a piece of clothing I designed myself many years ago, but I have never had the opportunity to wear it. This time I can finally wear it when I come to Shanghai.

Shangguan News: Is Shanghai important to you?

Yang Liping: Every time a new work is produced, I feel extremely excited and anxious, especially when I bring the work to Shanghai. Audiences in Shanghai love art and like to go into theaters to experience art. I think Shanghai is a window. My works "The Rite of Spring" and "House of Flying Daggers" have also entered the world stage through the China Shanghai International Arts Festival, so I am looking forward to blooming on this beautiful stage.

Shangguan News: is on stage at this age. To maintain good condition requires strong self-discipline. Is it difficult for you?

Yang Liping: There is nothing difficult. The main thing is to understand what you want. If you want to go on stage, you won’t be able to get even one or two more meat, right? If you are fatter, the zipper will not close. But you don’t eat or drink, and you don’t have the energy to dance on stage. Therefore, what is needed is a kind of wisdom, a kind of planning and balance for oneself.

Shangguan News: From "The Peacock Princess" in 1979, to the subsequent "The Spirit of the Bird" and "The Love of the Bird", to the 2018 "Peacock Winter", and then to the 2022 version of the dance drama "Peacock". "Peacock" is the stage image you have constantly pursued and repeatedly created from the age of 20 to 60. Why are you so obsessed with this image?

Yang Liping: In fact, I can not only dance the peacock dance, but also have many works. I like "Moonlight" very much and also like some other works, but "Peacock" runs throughout. I think peacock dance has the characteristics of Eastern women. You see there are swans in the West, but we have peacocks in Yunnan. The moment the peacock opens its tail, it will give you an ultimate experience of beauty. The peacock is a beautiful symbol of nature, embodying our recognition and pursuit of beauty. This Eastern aesthetic is rooted in our genes.

"Peacock" Winter Chapter

Shangguan News: From "The Spirit of the Bird" to the dance drama "Peacock" Winter Chapter, how has the "Peacock" you played changed?

Yang Liping: When she danced "Sparrow Spirit", she was a young girl who was just growing up and looking for beauty. In the winter chapter of "Peacock", I danced about "The Death of Peacock", which also danced about how a person faces death, the loss of life and the ascension of the soul.

Everyone knows when to come, but really doesn’t know when to leave. Therefore, the dance drama "Peacock" actually uses the peacock to symbolize the process of life, spring, summer, autumn and winter, birth, old age, illness and death. Everyone will face death, and when you reach my age, you will definitely have to face aging and death.

You said that it is difficult for a teenage girl to express death, because her life has not reached that point. The winter chapter of "Peacock" has a feeling of dust settling, which is suitable for my age to interpret. Because I am approaching the winter of my life, I think it is appropriate and will be more touching when I dance. Although winter is the end of the four seasons, winter also contains hope. It means the beginning of spring, which will start another cycle.

Shangguan News: Watching the video of your 50th anniversary as an artist, you told the cameraman not to take pictures too close, especially not to take close-ups. How do you deal with aging?

Yang Liping: You can only face it correctly and adjust your mentality. Now many people tend to deify you, but none of us are gods. Our spiritual world is very high and our souls can fly in the sky, but our bodies will eventually age and wither. So, just keep the sunshine of your mind and cherish every feather of yours.

Shangguan News: The styling of "Peacock" and "The Rite of Spring" has caused some controversy. Will you change yourself because of other people's opinions?

Yang Liping: These two works have been performed for many years. I also find it strange why there is controversy today. After all, the audience entering the theater was small. Many people did not see the truth of the matter, and their judgment was affected by the appearance, instead of activating their own wisdom. You have the ability to judge your own feelings, vision, and taste. Controversy will not stop the creators.

Yang Liping’s Peacock Style

Perfection is impossible, the pursuit of individuality is more important

Shangguan News: When you were 13 years old, you were admitted to the Xishuangbanna Song and Dance Troupe. Before that, you had never received any professional training. Is dance a talent and instinct for you?

Yang Liping: I have been dancing since I can remember. Dancing is a necessity in my life, just like eating and breathing. I can dance anywhere, under a tree or in a wheat field. When dancing, I feel like I am a grass, an ant, a butterfly, a peacock, and a life in nature.

For me, dance is not a profession or a responsibility, but a spontaneous need in life. It’s how I connect with the world, express my emotions, and free my soul.

Shangguan News: You started creating at an early age and created "The Spirit of the Bird" in your twenties. When did you discover that you were creative and build up your artistic confidence?

Yang Liping: I have never studied directing, but because of the land where I grew up, nature, life, and work have all cultivated me from an artistic perspective, which is a kind of accumulation for me. You think, if you study in school, you may graduate in 4 years, but I have learned from life and nature since I was a child, and these things have given me inspiration for creation. Everyone has different ways of absorbing inner energy. Some people read books, some learn from teachers, and some rely on their own observations.

Shangguan News: You went from Yunnan to Beijing in 1981 and returned to Yunnan in 2000. Why did you choose to return to your hometown?

Yang Liping: In the Central Ethnic Song and Dance Troupe , I also practiced ballet with them at first, but then I started thinking about how to have my own language. The further you go, the more you will discover your original value. We don’t have a ballet tradition, but we have our own culture, history, and rituals in which we can find our own dance language. So I created works such as "Sparrow Spirit", "Two Trees" and "Moonlight".

Later, when I reached retirement age and my mother was getting old, I told the group that I was going back. Moreover, when I returned to Yunnan in 2000, I no longer had such busy affairs. Maybe my creativity and imagination would flourish, and I would find a new world where I could do what I can for the rest of my life.

Yang Liping’s Peacock Style

Shangguan News: Many of your works can be identified as Yang Liping’s works just by looking at the stills. How did you find your own creative language?

Yang Liping: Finding your own expression clearly and accurately is actually a talent. You see, from "Sparrow Spirit", "Moonlight", to many works, people say that they are Yang's aesthetics at first glance, just like a painter or a composer, he must have his own unique style and taste, which is difficult to put into words Make it clear.

I think the most important thing may be wisdom. Treat your own talents wisely and treat the energy given to you by everything in the world. Don't force it, just do what you should do and what you are good at, and only do this one thing. If you focus on it, you will have penetrating power.

Shangguan News: Are you a perfectionist in life and art?

Yang Liping: No. Compared with perfection and personality, I think we should still pursue personality. Perfection is impossible, only relative perfection. So you need to clearly know your strengths and weaknesses and learn from each other's strengths.

When I danced "The Spirit of the Bird", I felt that my legs couldn't be raised high and they were definitely not as good as others, so I wore a big skirt to hide my legs. I have a really good arm, so I try to use my arm’s strengths as much as possible. In this way, you will give others the feeling of perfection. In fact, there are too many imperfections. You must know how to hide your shortcomings.

Shangguan News: Over the years, you have created one work after another and never stopped. How to always maintain a creative passion and ability?

Yang Liping: does not need to be maintained, it is love. But this process is actually full of challenges. You need to be very determined and have a very strong heart. Creation is a very difficult thing. It requires aesthetics, love, accumulation, and imagination in order to transform it into one work after another.

I think that when creating, you must be fully committed, respectful, sincere, and worthy of the audience. I do art not for fame and fortune, but to use dance to express my emotions, my love and attitude towards the world, so that life will have meaning.

The questions that Yang Liping asked Qu Yuan in the dance drama "Peacock" - Winter Chapter

are also the questions I want to ask.

Shangguan News: In your latest work "Image of Jingchu", you are particularly fond of the character Qu Yuan. Why?

Yang Liping: Qu Yuan’s personality and spirit gave me a baptism. He is a saint and my idol. I wonder how there is such a strange man in the world. He asked so many questions to heaven, earth and the world in "Tianwen". More than 100 questions are his thoughts, doubts and explorations, including many ultimate questions, such as: Nuwa created humans, so who created Nuwa?

These questions are quite profound and full of philosophical thoughts. They make us think about who we are, where we come from, and where we are going. These questions have not yet been answered, and this is what I want to ask.

Stills of "Image of Jingchu"

Shangguan News: The image of Qu Yuan portrayed by dancer Da Zhu is also very romantic.

Yang Liping: Yes, we chose to use a character like Qu Yuan to run through the whole story to show the romance of the Chinese people. "Make lotus flowers to make clothes, and gather hibiscus to make clothes." Qu Yuan put lotus leaves on his body and flowers on his head. His exploration of the world, nature, and all things awakened me and guided me.

Shangguan News: I heard that "Image of Jingchu" has been in preparation for several years. Where did the time go?

Yang Liping: In fact, the most time-consuming process is the process of discovering Jingchu culture. Sometimes in museums, you will be shocked by the cultural relics and the stories behind them. Take chimes for example. The ancients integrated vision, hearing, spirit and imagination so well into this instrument. It is very solemn and sacred, as if this instrument can communicate with God and all things in the world. Dancing is not a job, nor is it a competition. What matters is not what award you win or how much applause you get. By making this work, we hope to learn from our ancestors and pay tribute to tradition.

Shangguan News: What was the biggest problem you encountered during the creation of "Image of Jingchu"?

Yang Liping: There are so many treasures of traditional culture, which are too great and rich. However, we only have two hours and cannot accommodate too many cultural elements. This will test your appreciation and artistic sensitivity.

Qu Yuan's "Chu Ci" is relatively esoteric and difficult to understand. We hope that through artistic, youthful and fashionable expressions, the audience can understand and feel it, so we also incorporate opera, shadow puppetry, puppetry, martial arts and other arts. Technique.

Have you seen the giant bronze sculpture wall in "Image of Jingchu"? There are 10 national treasure-level cultural relics from Jingchu, including chime bells, Goujian sword of Yue King, tiger seat and phoenix drum, etc. The entire wall can also be tilted, raised and lowered, and there are some innovations in technology. Music director Tan Dun also used the sound of the original chime of Marquis Yi of Zeng that he collected. It is a sound that has traveled through two thousand years and has a soul collision with us today.

We hope that "Image of Jingchu" will not only show the greatness of our ancestors, but stop there, or turn this work into a hodgepodge. I think the most important thing is to find out the soul of Chu culture and think about what kind of spiritual connotation you want to convey today.

Shangguan News: What kind of spiritual connotation do you hope to convey?

Yang Liping: I hope that after watching this work, the audience can understand what kind of person Qu Yuan was, what kind of feelings he had for his family and country, and why he finally gave up his life. We want to awaken everyone's recollection of cultural memory and feel the thoughts that Qu Yuan's personality brought to us. "The road is long and long, and I will search up and down." What should we ask for when we live in the present?

Shangguan News: In recent years, many dance dramas with traditional cultural themes have "left the circle". What do you think of this phenomenon?

Yang Liping: This is a good thing. Historical figures and ancient cultural relics are resurrected in the theater through dance. I think it is particularly good. There are many outstanding young directors now, which makes me feel very happy. Everyone is exploring new ways of expression in dance drama.

"Image of Jingchu" does not talk about Qu Yuan's life, but explores how to show his spiritual world. Dance is not about telling the audience how pretty or beautiful I am. For example, some people may see the phoenix in "Image of Jingchu" as beautiful, but others may think: What ideals of the Chinese people are embodied in the phoenix? Why does the Phoenix want nirvana and rebirth? I think creation is the process of nirvana, and every birth of a new work is a new life.

Yang Liping and the Bronze Chimes

In these young people, I see my former self

Shangguan News: I have interviewed many young dancers who have followed you, such as Dazhu, Jinhua, and Qixin. Their personalities All very distinct."One Stage" and "25m2 Rhapsody" created by Da Zhu have both been to Shanghai, and "Ah Shao Bai" created by Jin Hua has just premiered in Shanghai. How did you first discover their talent?

Yang Liping: They all showed their artistic talents early. Jinhua, like me, is from the Bai ethnic group. When I was working on "Image of Yunnan," I took her out of the village. She was only 12 years old, and now it's been 20 years. At that time, Jinhua was a little Bai girl who couldn't even speak Mandarin. But later she made "The King's Whip" by herself and was able to tour the world speaking English, which is very remarkable. It took her two or three years to create "Aya Bai". We are all looking forward to the support that the Peacock Dance Company will give to a young, imaginative and creative dancer like her.

Da Zhu has appeared in many works on the Shanghai stage, including his own creations. This time during the rehearsal of "Image of Jingchu", Da Zhu seemed to have entered a "crazy" state. He was deeply involved in the play. He also specially studied opera and Guqin, and he also danced a lot, which was a great test for his physical strength. . He has starred in "Image of Pingtan", "House of Flying Daggers" and "The Rite of Spring", and has grown rapidly. This time, he is also the executive director of "Image of Jingchu".

Shangguan News: What qualities do you value most in these young dancers?

Yang Liping: When Jinhua was 12 years old, she was already famous in the village because she sang very well and loved and yearned for the stage very much. I think talent is important, love is important, and creativity is also important. People always say that literature is like a person. In fact, dancing is the same. It requires skills, artistry, and virtue.

Yang Liping and the young dancers of "Image of Jingchu"

Shangguan News: Last time I watched your "The Rite of Spring", the female dancers in it were very powerful and explosive. You trained them as if they were boys. ?

Yang Liping: "The Rite of Spring" is a very strong dance. The girls have to sacrifice their lives and dance until they die. Stravinsky's music itself is very strong. In "The Rite of Spring" I incorporated many Eastern philosophies and life values. The girls are both gods and ordinary people. They are struggling in the hardships of life, sacrificing themselves, and looking for themselves, so they must break out.

Shangguan News: How do you discover and release the personalities of these young dancers?

Yang Liping: Personality and recognition are very important. Look at Jinhua, her body is unrestrained. If you teach her an action, she may not be able to learn it, but if you inspire her and let her find the sky and the earth on her own, and find a kind of perception given to her by nature, she will have power.

You asked how a little boy like Dong Chonghan, who had just graduated from school, created a character like "Mountain Ghost" - a god in Qu Yuan's works - in "Image of Jingchu". His body is very feminine and very expressive.

Cheng Peiying, who plays Phoenix, I saw her on the Internet. I often search on the Internet and find that many masters are hiding among the people. When Peiying was dancing, I felt that her arms were very dexterous and she had the ability to shape the "Phoenix", so I invited her in. With her own efforts, she really won the role. She may have been dancing on the stage for 10 years, but she has never felt anything, and she can't find her way. But she became the "Phoenix" as soon as she jumped. Therefore, casting must be particularly accurate.

The "Phoenix" image in "Image of Jingchu"

Shangguan News: Therefore, it is a particularly lucky thing for an actor to meet a suitable role and the two become one.

Yang Liping: Yes, not only must the character be suitable, but also music, lighting, and costumes are indispensable. Only when all the good things are concentrated at one point can a wave and a shining point be gathered, so that the character can convey a full, full, and charming feeling. The power of abundance.

Shangguan News: When you see them, do you think of your past self? What do you expect from them?

Yang Liping: will.Seeing them working hard to shape themselves and express themselves will remind them of their former selves. The artistic acumen and creativity of young people cannot be underestimated. There are too many outstanding young dancers in China, and they need opportunities to be seen and appreciated. As seniors, I have the responsibility to give them a platform.

Back then, I learned peacock dance from Grandpa Mao Xiang, one move at a time. Watching Teacher Dao Meilan dance the peacock dance not only inherits the heritage of national culture, but more importantly, how can you show the aesthetics and taste of contemporary people in another window of art. It’s not about high or low, it’s about art itself advancing with the times.

Now, I am more of a "convener". I hope that the work will be passed down through young people, and my thoughts and feelings about life will be conveyed to the audience. I also hope that they can bloom individually. Every leaf is different, every person’s fingerprints are different, every soul is different, so everyone’s dance is unique.

Yang Liping

Dancer, Vice Chairman of the Chinese Dancers Association. Representative works include the dances "Sparrow Spirit", "Moonlight" and "Two Trees", the dance dramas "The Peacock Princess", "Peacock", "Peacock Winter", "The Rite of Spring", "House of Flying Daggers", and the stage plays "Image of Yunnan" and "Pingtan" "Image", "Image of Jingchu", etc.

This article was published in the Jiefang Daily Weekend Weekly on November 29, 2024