Yang Hairen

01 · Lineage & Regional School

Yang Hairen, Male, Han, from Anji, Zhejiang, is a sixth-batch national representative bearer of Lantern Dance (Ⅲ-45). The tradition is documented in Anji, Zhejiang. Within the regional tradition and school record of Lantern Dance in Anji, Zhejiang: The Shangshe dragon-transforming lantern arose in Shangshe Village, Meixi Town, Anji County, and is transmitted around Anji, Changxing and Guangde in Anhui. The Yang clan in the village is the main line of transmission; every year in the first lunar month the lantern calls at the doors of the households in the village, and in the third month it goes again to Baiyun Temple at Xiaoshu for the temple-fair performance. The red envelopes received from the door calls are discussed and apportioned by the lantern team, and are used to repair the props and to make the lanterns in the following year. The locality has also set up a middle-school dragon dance team and a dragon dance art troupe, passing the incantation of the 'four transformations' to a new generation and also making the dragon-transforming lantern one of the distinctive forms of local cultural activity in Anji. The Shangshe dragon-transforming lantern originated in the folk spring festival lantern dances, also called the 'flower dragon lantern'; it arose in Shangshe Village, Meixi Town, Anji County, Zhejiang Province, and is transmitted in the area of Anji County and Changxing County of Huzhou City, Zhejiang Province, and Guangde County (now Guangde City), Anhui Province. By the Daoguang reign the performer Yang Jiulin developed the 'four transformations' of the dragon lantern, and at the same time made 12 flower-vase lanterns and 2 head-banner lanterns, and it evolved into the dragon-transforming lantern.

02 · Mastery & Signature Works

The bearer record for Yang Hairen is anchored in the documented technical standards of Lantern Dance in Anji, Zhejiang. Within the documented technical tradition of Lantern Dance in Anji, Zhejiang: In the Jiajing reign of the Qing dynasty the Yang clan ancestors of Shangshe Village strung the flower lanterns performed at temple fairs into the shape of a dragon, made a dragon head and dragon tail, and called it the 'flower dragon lantern'. In the Shangshe dragon-transforming lantern performance, two people carry the head-banner lanterns to lead the procession. When calling at the doors of the households, the flower-lantern figure first 'moves in formation' around the hall columns of the main room, with the four-corner formation, the scissors formation, the ingot formation, the fence formation and others. There are two forms of the dragon transformation: first, the dragon is joined on in the reception hall behind the main room of a wealthy household, and for houses with no reception hall the dragon is 'transformed' behind the 'clouds' formed by turning the flower vases around; after the transformation the dragon dances in the main room, bows once more to the host and receives the host's reward. Hence the saying that 'inside the door it is a flower lantern, outside the door it is a dragon lantern'. When calling at the door, if the household is that of a boy studying for the examinations, on entering one must 'step over the inkstone' and 'present the brush' to the scholar, wishing him a future as splendid as brocade; if the household is newly married but not yet with a child, a pair of baby shoes is presented, meaning that the dragon king has brought a son; if the household is in trade, one paper ingot is presented to wish the host a broad flow of wealth, and the host presents a red envelope to the dragon's head. The characteristic of the Shangshe dragon-transforming lantern lies in its 'four transformations': during the dance the treasure basin becomes the dragon's head, the longevity peach lantern becomes the dragon's pearl, the bat lantern becomes the dragon's tail, and the nine flower lanterns become the dragon's body. Its traditional performance sites are mainly the hall courtyards of ordinary dwellings, and they also include squares, temples and clan halls. Every year in the first lunar month the dragon-transforming lantern is active in the area of Shangshe Village. In the third lunar month it also goes to Baiyun Temple at Xiaoshu to take part in the temple-fair performance. In addition, a middle-school dragon dance team and a dragon dance art troupe have been established to train successors, to attract more young people to take part, and to pass on the incantation of the 'four transformations' to the new generation. Today's Shangshe dragon-transforming lantern has already become one of the distinctive forms of local cultural activity in Anji. The Shangshe dragon-transforming lantern is a traditional dance collectively created by the people of Shangshe Village and widely transmitted, and it concentrates the wisdom of the people and the experience of social life. This heritage item has become an important mode of interaction among village members, and it has powerfully promoted the harmonious development of relationships among villagers. As its influence keeps growing, the Shangshe dragon-transforming lantern has become one of Anji's distinctive cultural activities. Representative repertoire, works and technical entries recorded for the project include: "The four transformations": Its hallmark is the four transformations: the treasure bowl becomes the dragon head, the peach the pearl, the bat the tail and nine flower lanterns the body. "The courtyard formations": When paying door-to-door visits the lanterns first trace courtyard formations - four corners, scissors, ingot and fence patterns - around the pillars of the main hall. "The house-visit protocol": For a scholar's household the dragon steps over an inkstone and presents a brush; for newlyweds it gives baby shoes; for a merchant, a paper ingot. "Entering as lanterns, leaving as a dragon": The dragon is joined either in the rear hall or hidden behind reversed vase-clouds, then danced in the main hall before thanks are given, hence entering as lanterns and leaving as a dragon.

03 · Transmission & Safeguarding Status

In 2025, Yang Hairen was announced in the sixth batch of national representative bearers for Lantern Dance, with Anji, Zhejiang as the declared area. Within the documented safeguarding record of Lantern Dance in Anji, Zhejiang: The project was inscribed in the national inventory in 2014 (batch 4), with Anji, Zhejiang as its declared area, and Anji County Meixizhenshangshecun Joint-stock Economic Cooperative as its safeguarding unit. Since the project was inscribed in the national inventory, its declared area and safeguarding unit have carried out documentation, transmission and presentation within the national safeguarding framework. Together, the inventory record and the project archive form the public documentary basis for the bearer’s transmission practice.

04 · Associated Heritage Item Dossier

05 · Fellow National Bearers Lineage

National representative bearers recorded under the same item code, ordered from the first to the sixth batch. Batch order is not a teacher–student relationship.

06 · Archival Sources & Bibliography

1. Yanghairen (Anji, Zhejiang) · China ICH Official Project Archive
2. Yanghairen · China ICH Official Archive