(Ecns.cn)--Different from an ordinary theatrical play or rock concert which are often seen and talked about by common people, dance dramas in China seem to be an inaccessible genre for many.
As a type of performance art that tells a story via the body, dance drama are harder to understand and less attractive to the public, especially without any background knowledge. Although only a small group of people love this art form, the glamour of it cannot be concealed.
Long history in China
It is hard to trace back the exact time when the dance drama originated, but it is widely accepted that the Western Zhou Dynasty (from 1066 to 771 BC) saw an early development of Chinese dance drama.
Dawu, a well-known dance that formed during the Zhou Dynasty, is the very first grand dance with a plot in historical records. Different from its predecessors that were merely about body movements, the dance incorporated the art forms of dance, music, and poetry together.
Coming into the Han Dynasty (from 206 BC to 220 AD), dances met a new development period when a musical entertainment court was set up for the imperial family, which became a center for systematically documenting and improving folk songs and dances.
Later with the development of the social economy and the stability of the country in the Tang Dynasty (from 618 AD to 907), dances flourished. Though the dance drama was not exactly like it is today, dances in this time combined more elements, like Buddhism and folk dances from many other countries such as India, Rome, and Persia (Iran).
After the Ming (1368-1644) and Qing (1644-1911) Dynasties, dance and drama ultimately blended together.
As an independent art form, modern Chinese dance drama emerged in the early 1930s. In a sense, the Chinese dance drama was an outcome of the introduction of foreign art.
