Wuhan Acrobatics
01 · Historical Records
The development of Wuhan acrobatics went through the following stages: during the Jiaqing and Daoguang reigns of the Qing dynasty, folk acrobats came to Wuhan to perform, and gradually formed troupes that entered stage performance; from 1912 to 1949, the Yonghe Hall of the Hankou People's Amusement Park (the New Market) became the center of acrobatic performance, with more than twenty acrobatic programs rotating daily; later there were more than fifty performing troupes, twelve of them led by famous acrobats and magicians and permanently resident at the People's Amusement Park; in 1953 the Wuhan Acrobatic Troupe was formally established. Since the 1990s, Wuhan has repeatedly held acrobatic performances, competitions, and acrobatic festivals, dedicated to promoting and transmitting Wuhan acrobatics.
02 · Core Techniques & Process
Wuhan acrobatics is a traditional cultural form of expression created on the basis of folk acrobatics of the Jingchu region while drawing on the finest elements of the various acrobatic schools; it is distributed in Wuhan, Hubei Province. Wuhan acrobatics not only has a long history and rich content, but also bears the distinctive characteristics of the Jingchu region and is deeply loved by the public. Wuhan acrobatics emphasizes both the careful refinement of individual acts and the majestic momentum of ensemble numbers. Representative works include a large number of acrobatic programs such as "Balancing Bowls", "Flower-Biting Contortion", "Chair Poses", "High Springboard", "Group Bicycle Skills", "Plate Spinning", "Swing-Bridge Flyers", "Little Flyers", "Double Fixed Bicycles", "Double Parallel Bars", "Contortion with Bowls", "Trained Panda", and "Trampoline Tossing", as well as magic and comedy acts such as "Sword Through Cards", "Vase and Lotus", "Balancing a Barrel", "Hat Tossing", and "Ball Bouncing"; it has also developed circus animal-training programs such as "Trained Lions and Bears" and "Trained Lions and Tigers". Wuhan acrobatics has ultimately developed into a comprehensive stage acrobatic art combining stage acrobatics, high-altitude acrobatics, magic, circus animal training, and clowning, full of the rich flavor of Chu-Han culture; its style is grand and spectacular, gorgeous and magnificent, yet also retains grace and gentleness.
Balancing Bowls
The signature act that took gold at the 1957 Moscow youth festival, with Xia Juhua adding water turns, one-hand stands and foot-held bowls.
Contortion with the Flower
A classic of the Wuhan company, created and performed by Xia Juhua and filmed for the documentary Chinese Acrobatics.
Plate Spinning, Flying Trapeze and Trampoline
The group and aerial acts of Wuhan acrobatics, showing its blend of finely polished solos with spectacular ensemble work.
Sword and Tablet, Vase and Lotus, Balancing the Tub
The magic and comedy numbers of the company, joined by animal acts to complete its five-part programme.
The Yonghe hall of the Hankou amusement park
The acrobatic centre of Hankou from 1912 to 1949, where over fifty troupes played and from which the city company was founded in 1953.
Xia Juhua, the queen of acrobatics
The national-level inheritor and former chair of the Chinese Acrobats' Association, whose disciple won Monaco's Golden Clown.
03 · Regional Records & Related Items
Wuhan, situated at the "thoroughfare of nine provinces", has long been the center where the traditional acrobatics of the Yangtze River basin converge. Through the unremitting pursuit and efforts of several generations, Wuhan acrobatics has developed into a form of acrobatic performance with strong local characteristics that enjoys renown both in China and abroad.
04 · Cultural Value & Contemporary Safeguarding
Acrobatic troupes of various periods, represented by the Wuhan Acrobatic Troupe, have trained many outstanding acrobatic artists through master-disciple instruction and troupe-based transmission, contributing to the protection and transmission of Wuhan acrobatics. After a century of transmission, Wuhan acrobatics has developed into a cultural brand of acrobatics with all four major categories — acrobatics, magic, circus, and comedy — complete; it is representative in the inheritance and development of China's traditional acrobatic art, and has played a positive role in international cultural exchange. Xia Juhua (according to the official records of the associated inheritor): female, Han ethnicity, born in October 1937, from Qianshan City, Anhui Province. A first-class national acrobatic performer. She formerly served as chairwoman of the China Acrobats Association. The programs "Balancing Bowls" and "Flower-Biting Contortion", which she created and performed, became classics of Chinese acrobatics and were selected for the documentary "The Art of Chinese Acrobatics". In 1956, as a lead performer, she toured eight Western European countries with the Chinese Acrobatic Troupe. From 1960 to 1963 she created a succession of highly difficult movements, including "bowl balancing with a water turn", the one-hand handstand, "clamping a bowl with the instep", and the "double double-swallow flip-top", breaking with the tradition of fixing the bowl on the head, and earned the reputation of "Queen of Acrobatics". She is a representative inheritor of Wuhan acrobatics, an intangible cultural heritage project of the fifth national-level batch. In 1957 "Balancing Bowls" won a gold medal at the Sixth World Youth Festival in Moscow, the first time a Chinese acrobatic act had won a gold medal in an international competition. She attaches great importance to training young talent; her disciple Li Liping was the first Chinese person to win the "Golden Clown", the highest award of the Monte Carlo International Circus Festival.
05 · Associated Representative Bearers
Representative bearers recorded under this item, organized by national nomination batch:
06 · Authoritative Sources & Bibliography
Sources
China Intangible Cultural Heritage Network (ihchina.cn)
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