Chinese traditional painting and dance are two vital parts of the art world. But what about when they meet each other?
This year, a dance drama titled Poetic Dance: The Journey of a Legendary Landscape Painting was staged on CCTV's Spring Festival Gala and went viral.
According to CCTV, this poetic dance program was inspired by the 900-year-old Chinese painting A Panorama of Rivers and Mountains. Created by Song Dynasty (960-1279) painter Wang Ximeng at about 18, the painting is "stunning in its sweeping scale, rich coloration and the expressive details", reported CCTV. It shows a Chinese blue-green landscape: "mountains and groupings of infinite rise and fall between cloudless sky and rippling water".
To show the Chinese traditional aesthetics ( 美 学 ) of the painting, the dance performance conceptualized dancers as the mountains. They each had a different hairstyle, which resembled a mountain rock. The clothes they wore were shades of green and blue, which is also a poetic interpretation of the mountains and rivers.
When the dancers swayed elegantly, audiences seemed to be looking at the moving mountains and rivers.
"It brings me a pure experience of beauty. It is not only a drama but also an ‘exhibition'. Vast mountains and rivers are coming to life!" internet user Mo Weisha wrote in a review. "More than a thousand years later, green mountains and rivers still wow people as they did long ago."
Some people even decided to watch the dance again when it was staged in the theaters later.
In fact, in recent years, more and more modern shows highlight Chinese traditional culture and have received warm welcome. As for why, it is attributed to people's great love for traditional culture.
"The younger generations have grown up with a more open mindset. They embrace Chinese culture and are proud of it," Yao Wei, director of Henan TV station's Innovation Center, told China Daily.
