Su Wanchao
01 · Lineage & Regional School
Su Wanchao, Male, Yi, from Hezhang, Guizhou, is a sixth-batch national representative bearer of Yi Lingdang Dance (Ⅲ-69). The tradition is documented in Hezhang, Guizhou. Within the regional tradition and school record of Yi Lingdang Dance in Hezhang, Guizhou: The Yi bell dance, called “kenhebei” in Yi, is a traditional folk dance by which the Yi people commemorate the dead; it circulates mainly in Zhushi Township of Hezhang County in northwestern Guizhou Province, and is also distributed in Caishen Town, Zhijie Township, Hezhen Township, Shuangping Township, Anle Township and other townships. Its history can be traced back to the 8th century BCE, to the era when the Yi forebear Duerdi enfeoffed the Six Marquises.
02 · Mastery & Signature Works
The bearer record for Su Wanchao is anchored in the documented technical standards of Yi Lingdang Dance in Hezhang, Guizhou. Within the documented technical tradition of Yi Lingdang Dance in Hezhang, Guizhou: At that time every branch of the feudal clans put all its people under arms and formed bodies of cavalry; when the king or chief held sacrifices in honour of departed forebears, his subordinates had to organise a troop of 120 horsemen together with a song-and-dance company of several dozen people to display the bearing of their knights on the sacrificial dance ground. In the dancing the hand bells have to be shaken to control the rhythm, and from this the “bell dance” gets its name. The bell dance is magnificent and tragic, bold and rough; two lines of dancers advance toward one another as if galloping horses and snapping whips, well ordered yet full of unforeseen change. The dancers sing first and then dance, song and dance being one and the same; what the dance presents is the traditional production and life of the Yi people, its content plain and wholesome. The dance takes its beat from drums and bronze bells, the ringing sometimes like a sudden downpour and sometimes like quiet talk. The dance contains many movements of great difficulty, light as a startled swan and sinuous as a dragon, and it renders to the full the bloodied valour of the Yi men of the mountains on the battlefield. When dancing the bell dance, the dancer holds a horse bell in the right hand and a coloured ribbon in the left, and dances with pleasure. In the past the “kenhebei” allowed only young men to dance, and the number of performers was generally four or six. After the founding of the People’s Republic of China and following adaptation, the performance form of the bell dance became more varied, with substantial adjustments to the staging and the interweaving of formations and some change of content, now chiefly presenting the national development history of the Yi forebears, who survived tenaciously in their struggle against nature, with men tilling and women weaving, living and multiplying from generation to generation. From that point on, women were also able to take part. Representative repertoire, works and technical entries recorded for the project include: "The origin in the six marquisates": The dance traces to the eighth century BCE, when mourners paraded 120 horsemen and dance teams before the king. "Horse bells and coloured ribbons": Dancers hold horse bells in the right hand and ribbons in the left, shaking the bells to keep time. "Kenhebei as a funerary dance": Called kenhebei in Yi, it was once danced only by four or six young men at funerals, opened to women after 1949. "Drum and bronze bell beats": Drum and bronze bells set the beat, sometimes like downpour, sometimes like whispering, as two teams charge like horsemen.
The origin in the six marquisates
The dance traces to the eighth century BCE, when mourners paraded 120 horsemen and dance teams before the king.
Horse bells and coloured ribbons
Dancers hold horse bells in the right hand and ribbons in the left, shaking the bells to keep time.
Kenhebei as a funerary dance
Called kenhebei in Yi, it was once danced only by four or six young men at funerals, opened to women after 1949.
Drum and bronze bell beats
Drum and bronze bells set the beat, sometimes like downpour, sometimes like whispering, as two teams charge like horsemen.
03 · Transmission & Safeguarding Status
In 2025, Su Wanchao was announced in the sixth batch of national representative bearers for Yi Lingdang Dance, with Hezhang, Guizhou as the declared area. Within the documented safeguarding record of Yi Lingdang Dance in Hezhang, Guizhou: The project was inscribed in the national inventory in 2008 (batch 2), with Hezhang, Guizhou as its declared area, and Hezhang County Cultural Center 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
Historical origin
Its history can be traced back to the 8th century BCE, to the era when the Yi forebear Duerdi enfeoffed the Six Marquises.
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.
| Bearer | Declared area | Roster code | Relation |
|---|---|---|---|
| Su Wanchao | Hezhang, Guizhou | — | This page |
06 · Archival Sources & Bibliography
This static English edition is rendered at the edge for search engines, AI crawlers and readers without JavaScript. Compiled from official national representative bearer archival records and the associated project dossier, organized by topic and translated into English. 阅读中文版。