Taige

Ⅹ-87Folk CustomsMiluo, HunanBatch 3 (2011)Extension Item

01 · Historical Records

The Changle Raised-Platform Story Gathering arose in the Sui and Tang dynasties and flourished in the Ming and Qing dynasties.

02 · Core Techniques & Process

The Raised-Platform Story Gathering is a form of taige performance preserved within the traditional festive folk activities of Changle Town, Miluo City, Hunan Province. From the first day of the first lunar month to the Lantern Festival, the people of Changle divide themselves into two bodies, the Upper Market Street and the Lower Market Street, and hold competitive story-gathering performances. The content of the raised-platform stories is mostly tales of loyalty, filial piety, integrity and righteousness from past ages, together with folk legends; it falls into four main categories — ground stories, ground-platform stories, high-colour stories and stilt stories. It is also divided into the Upper Market Street and Lower Market Street story gatherings. When the story gatherings parade and perform, they are accompanied by gathering banners, coloured flags, plaques, coloured lanterns, gongs and drums and bands, and are further matched with folk entertainment troupes such as coloured-dragon play, fire-dragon dance, lion dance, lotus boats and waist drums, with the upper street and the lower street competing to see which is superior and spectators massed like a wall. The members of each story-gathering organization come together voluntarily, without pay, with expenses raised by themselves. The project is of great significance for carrying on the fine traditions of the Chinese nation, enriching the cultural life of the masses and building a harmonious society.

Rivalry between the upper and lower streets

From New Year to the Lantern Festival the town divides into two rival street teams.

Four kinds of story platform

Stories fall into four types: ground, platform, high colour and stilt.

Flags, lanterns and gongs in procession

Banners, lanterns, gongs and bands lead a parade of dragons, lions and drums that draws packed crowds.

Self-funded and unpaid

Members form themselves, take no pay and raise their own funds.

The award-winning Battle of Lu Wenlong

In 2008 The Battle of Lu Wenlong took silver at a national floating-colour exhibition.

03 · Regional Records & Related Items

The Changle Raised-Platform Story Gathering is divided, according to the town's streets, into two branches, the Upper Market Street and the Lower Market Street; the members of each story-gathering organization come together voluntarily, without pay, with expenses raised by themselves, and from the first day of the first lunar month to the Lantern Festival they parade in succession at their respective street entrances. The representative inheritor Chen Fanxing is in charge of direction and staging; the Changle Raised-Platform Story Gathering arose in the Sui and Tang dynasties and flourished in the Ming and Qing dynasties. The inheritor Li Yangbo's record height on stilts reaches 4.2 metres; he has also mastered five percussion routines — Deshengling, Changgu Liuzi, Shizi Gunqiu, Jinshe Kuangwu and Xique Sao Mei — and the make-up techniques for more than 140 opera characters.

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04 · Cultural Value & Contemporary Safeguarding

Chen Fanxing (official archive record of the associated inheritor): Male, of Han ethnicity, born in August 1952, native of Miluo City, Hunan Province. Representative inheritor of the national-level intangible cultural heritage project Raised Platforms (Changle Raised-Platform Story Gathering), fourth national batch. In 2006 he received the Excellent Director Award at the cultural and artistic performance event of the China Yueyang (Miluo River) International Dragon Boat Festival. In 2008 the story-gathering work "The Great Battle with Lu Wenlong" won the silver award at the Chinese Folk Piaose (Raised Platforms) Art Exhibition and Performance, and was among the shortlisted works for the Chinese Folk Literature and Art Shanhua Award — Folk Art Performance Award (folk ritual performance). Li Yangbo (official archive record of the associated inheritor): Male, of Han ethnicity, born in June 1954, native of Miluo City, Hunan Province. His record height on stilts reaches 4.2 metres, and he is able to perform such demanding movements as twisting, jumping, bending at the waist and leaning backwards. At the same time he has mastered five percussion routines — Deshengling, Changgu Liuzi, Shizi Gunqiu, Jinshe Kuangwu and Xique Sao Mei — the make-up techniques for more than 140 opera characters, and methods of "story" presentation for more than 400 historical allusions. Representative inheritor of the national-level intangible cultural heritage project Raised Platforms (Changle Raised-Platform Story Gathering), fifth national batch. In 2009 he took part in the first Hunan Province North-and-South Styles Kyushu Temple Fair and won the Best Performance Award.

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)

Read the official ihchina.cn record ↗

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