Manchu Ergui Wrestling
01 · Historical Records
Manchu Ergui Wrestling evolved from the traditional athletic contest of Qiao Xiangpu (Manchu wrestling). It is a traditional folk prop dance that circulated in the towns and countryside of Longhua County, Hebei Province, and it took shape around the end of the Daoguang reign of the Qing dynasty (1850), giving it a history of more than 180 years.
02 · Core Techniques & Process
Ergui Wrestling is a solo performance form: the performer carries a wooden frame rigged to look like two people on his back and assumes wrestling postures. In performance he must wear garments of two different colors and, using his own two legs and two arms to play two wrestlers, performs mutual wrestling movements. Hidden from view behind the prop frame, the performer uses martial-arts routines, wrestling techniques, and dance vocabulary — swinging, spinning, rolling, flipping, throwing, sweeping, kicking, blocking, tripping, lifting, and grappling — to execute comic, humorous, yet lifelike wrestling movements. The entire performance flows through in one continuous breath, accompanied by drum-and-wind music. Longhua Manchu Ergui Wrestling differs from the 'Two-Man Wrestling' or 'Two-Ghost Wrestling' of other ethnic regions: during the performance the performer's legs crouch fully and his hands plant directly on the ground, creating the exaggerated posture of two dwarfs wrestling. This makes the movements more agile and the image more lifelike, and its singular artistic charm and stage effect cannot be matched by any other form of 'wrestling'. In recent years Ergui Wrestling has grown from a solo performance into a group dance of six to eight performers, enhancing the fiery, exuberant atmosphere. The prop of Ergui Wrestling is a 'human frame' lashed together from bamboo and wood and fashioned to look like two wrestlers with wrapped heads and bound waists. The performer bends over and bears the frame on his back; his own arms, planted on the ground, serve as the legs of the front figure, while his crouching legs serve as the legs of the rear figure; the costume is made in two colors to indicate the 'two men'. When the drums and winds strike up, the performer uses movements such as swinging, spinning, rolling, flipping, throwing, sweeping, kicking, blocking, tripping, and lifting to depict grappling, tripping, and turning defeat into victory — all in one continuous flow, provoking laughter while remaining true to the authentic moves of wrestling.
From qiao wrestling to ergui wrestling
Evolved from the older qiao wrestling contest and formed around 1850, it is a prop dance of the Longhua countryside.
The frame and the two-colour suit
One performer carries a frame shaped as two wrestlers, wearing two-coloured clothing so that arms and legs read as two bodies.
The action vocabulary
Martial routines, wrestling skills and dance vocabulary combine in swinging, rolling, sweeping and lifting actions.
Crouching with hands on the ground
Unlike other two-man wrestling props, it crouches fully with hands planted on the ground, making two squat figures that move more freely.
From solo to group dance
In recent years the solo turn has grown into a group dance of six to eight performers for livelier public shows.
Festival processions and drum music
Performed in festival processions to the accompaniment of drums, it is one of Longhua's most popular folk turns.
03 · Regional Records & Related Items
Manchu Ergui Wrestling circulates mainly in the Manchu-inhabited villages of Longhua County town and the townships of Zhangsanying, Tangsanying, Guojiatun, and Bugugou. It is performed mostly at New Year and Lantern Festival temple fairs and rural arts gatherings, with village artists carrying the wooden frame through the streets or mounting the stage. Longhua lies at the northern foot of the Yanshan Mountains, on the outskirts of the Qing-dynasty Mulan hunting grounds; it has many Manchu-inhabited villages and a flourishing tradition of New Year temple fairs, which is why this prop pastime has long persisted between town and countryside.
04 · Cultural Value & Contemporary Safeguarding
Manchu Ergui Wrestling is a traditional folk prop pastime with special historical, academic, practical, research, and ornamental value. However, due to the impact of modern culture and other factors, Ergui Wrestling has declined day by day and is on the verge of extinction; its protection is urgently needed.
06 · Authoritative Sources & Bibliography
Sources
China Intangible Cultural Heritage Network (ihchina.cn)
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