History of Stilt Dancing in China
Walking on stilts and dancing, a kind of yangge (popular rural folk dance celebrating transplant of rice seedlings), dates to the Han Dynasty (206 BC-AD 220). It was popular during the Qing Dynasty (1644-1911) and reached its climax during the reign of Empress Dowager Cixi (1861-1908). At her 60th birthday party, Cixi praised a performance given by the Wudouzhai Stilt Team. And Wudouzhai, located at Dashilan'r in Qianmen, is the place name where the founder of this team lived more than 200 years ago. At the end of the Qing Dynasty, these stilt performers began to exhibiting their stunning skills at temple fairs. Since some of the temple fairs, such as the Miaofengshan Temple Fair, were in suburban areas, they brought noodles and sesame paste with them. After the 1920s, these folk art performances ceased for a long time because of wars. From 1978, they resumed, but stopped again at the end of 1980s because of lack of training space and new recruits to the craft.
"I'm so happy that I have had more than 10 new dancers since ," Zhang Quanzeng, a Wudouzhai Stilt Team-member's descendent said. Although 77 years old, Master Zhang gave them free classes once every week. To his delight, these youngsters practiced hard every day and were showcased at the Changdian Temple Fair in 2005. As a temple fair with the longest history in , the Changdian Temple Fair is famous for its vast array of folk art performances, and stilt dancing is just one among them, but an important one just the same.
According to Master Zhang, stilt dancing has basic rules, some of which may be a little suspect in this day and age. He asserted that all the performers should be men, as the Wudouzhai's movements are considered too dangerous for women. If female roles are used, they are played by men. All 12 performers should perform while standing on 85-centimetre high stilts made of fir. Among the 12 performers, the first two carry gongs with them to attract audiences, making a path in a crowd for the following performers. Audiences can judge easily from the costumes and movements which roles the dancers are playing, such as a fisherman or woodchopper.
Wudouzhai stilt dancing has its own unique characters.
"Originally stilts were divided into two kinds, the one with more movements than words, and the other with more words than movements. Wudouzhai belonged to the latter at its beginning, with many humorous words coming from daily life."
"Referring to the characters in the performances, almost half of them originate from 水浒
传 (Shuihuzhuan or The Water Margin), one of 's four most famous novels). To attract audiences and dazzle them, more astonishing movements were added. For example, crouching, turning somersaults and sitting on the floor with two legs apart. Meanwhile, the performers maintain their balance by swaying the upper part of the body and bending their knees."
"Wudouzhai stilt dancing is more complicated than other kinds of stilt dancing. The rules for beating gongs and drums are complex. Performers need to act according to the tunes of beating gongs and drums. And during the training of youngsters, the most difficult thing is mastering the rules of beating gongs and drums. Though I need to tell them again and again, I really love this. I don't want this kind of folk art to disappear." Master Zhang said with a smile.
Cai Gaoqiao, or walking on stilts, is another popular traditional performance of the Spring Festival, especially in . Cai means walking on, and Gaoqiao means stilts. According to the archives, our Chinese ancestors began using stilts to help them gather fruits from trees. This practical use of stilts gradually developed into a kind of folk dance.
Gaoqiao performance requires high skills and varies in forms. Usually the performers tie two long stilts to their feet, making them higher than others when standing on stilts. On their "moving stage", they are deeply loved by masses.
Most stilts used today are made from wood. There are "double stilts" and "single stilt" performances. The double stilts are usually tied to one's shank to fully demonstrate his skill; and the single stilt is held by the performer so that he can go up and down freely. The performance can be also divided into "Wenqiao" (the civil one) and "Wuqiao" (the martial one). The former stresses appearance and amusement, while the latter emphasizes individual unique skill. Gaoqiao has now assumed strong local flavor and national color.
In , Gaoqiao is done at three levels, and people at the upper level stand on the shoulder of the lower ones.
In and , performers show their high skills by jumping on one foot or going through obstacles. Some performers can even jump down from four highly-piled tables on one foot.
In , Gaoqiao in southern is the most famous. It has complete procedures and a standard form. At first, performers must "Daxiang", that is, one stands on the shoulder of another and do a yangko dance. Then they run to change queue formations. At last, they perform in groups including pair dancing, "catching butterflies", "fishing" and small local operas, etc.
Ethnic groups, when performing Gaoqiao, usually wear clothes of their own nationality. The Bouyei ethnic group has both double stilts and single one; the latter one, due to its simplicity, is especially loved by children. In "Gaoqiao Shuama" of the Bai ethnic group, performers are dressed like a horse. The "Two-Person Gaoqiao" of the Uygur ethnic group blends their local dance in it, which is new and fresh.
