Stilt Walking
01 · Historical Records
It was later reworked by the Ming-dynasty music theorist Prince Zhu Zaiyu, who merged the two folk arts of stilt walking and carrying the flower sedan chair into one, forming a feat of skill; through its distinctive means of artistic expression it raised the humble status and image of the grassroots “sedan bearers”.
02 · Core Techniques & Process
Stilt walking is also called “stilt yangge”. It is a folk dance with a long history, widely transmitted throughout the country, and is named for the fact that the performers mostly tread on wooden stilts with both feet. Stilt walking is generally performed in the form of a troupe, with participants numbering from a dozen or so to several dozen. They mostly portray figures from ancient myths or historical stories, their costumes mostly imitate the role costumes of Chinese opera, and the props commonly used in performance include fans, handkerchiefs, wooden sticks, sabres and spears and the like. Stilt walking has two performance forms, “stilt parade” and “field performance”; the latter is in turn divided into the “large field” and the “small field”. The “large field” is performed collectively by the troupe, dancing while moving through various formations and patterns; the “small field” is performed by two or three people, mostly a man-and-woman duet, sometimes dancing while singing. The wooden stilts used in different places range from 30 centimetres to 300 centimetres; according to performance style they can be divided into “civil stilts” and “martial stilts”, the civil stilts stressing twisting, treading and plot-driven performance, while the martial stilts stress displays of virtuosity. The high-carried fire sedan is a style of folk dance in Henan Province, transmitted in Wannan Village of Qinyang City. Its form is unique and it has exerted major influence within an area of five hundred li around it. The high-carried fire sedan is performed in a form that combines dancing with storytelling and singing, accompanied on the side by a guan pipe, suona, gongs and drums. During the performance, 16 people are divided into two teams which take turns stepping on five-chi stilts to carry the flower sedan chair forward, while the performer seated inside the chair talks and sings. Four to six people, stepping on six-chi stilts, spin the “auspicious umbrella” to lead the fire sedan forward; other members of the stilt team, stepping on stilts ranging from two chi to five chi, hold palace lanterns, gauze lanterns, auspicious umbrellas, chess-piece lanterns and “avoid and be silent” tablets, simulating scenes such as the progresses of an emperor or official and the marriage of ordinary people. The performance also incorporates material such as “gong-and-drum notation”, “awakening-the-world lyrics” and “principle-and-reason lyrics”. The high-carried fire sedan is generally performed at night on major festivals; the flower sedan chair of ordinary folk dance is changed into a fire sedan chair, the cloth sedan into a gauze sedan, and lighted candles are set into it, carrying the sense of booming prosperity and flourishing success. The entire performance is full of thrilling excitement and festive atmosphere, displaying distinctive local characteristics. The high-carried fire sedan is a feat of skill handed down through the family, with a long history.
The reworking by Zhu Zaiyu
The Ming music theorist Zhu Zaiyu, Prince of Zheng, fused stilt walking with bridal-chair carrying into a single feat, elevating the lowly image of the chair bearers.
Sixteen bearers in two alternating shifts
Sixteen performers in two shifts take turns carrying the chair on five-foot stilts while the seated actor speaks and sings, the show combining dance with narration.
Four to six turning the auspicious umbrella on six-foot stilts
Four to six dancers on six-foot stilts spin the auspicious umbrella ahead of the chair, while others on stilts of two to five feet carry palace lamps, gauze lamps, lantern-chess lights and clearance placards.
The lanterns and placards of the procession
The ceremonial props that imitate an imperial or official progress or a village wedding, accompanied by pipe, suona and drums for a thrilling and festive atmosphere.
The drum scores, awakening verses and reasoning verses
Verses sung and recited within the performance, part of the form's textual side alongside its dance and narration.
The fire chair and gauze chair lit for night performance
Performed at night on major festivals, the bridal chair becomes a fire chair of gauze stuck with burning candles, signifying blazing prosperity.
Wei Pingjun and carrying the chair on the head
Born in Qinyang in 1962, Wei Pingjun learned from Liu Fenglou and Zhang Shengming in 1982, raised the stilts, shifted the carry from shoulder to head and added turns in all directions.
03 · Regional Records & Related Items
The Wannan high-carried fire sedan has a long history; it is said that as early as the Tang and Song dynasties the local residents already had the custom of stepping on stilts, carrying flower sedan chairs and making merry to welcome the New Year.
Other submitting regions for the same item: Stilt Walking · Stilt Walking · Stilt Walking · Stilt Walking · Stilt Walking · Stilt Walking · Stilt Walking.
04 · Cultural Value & Contemporary Safeguarding
In recent years the performers of the high-carried fire sedan have aged, there is a dearth of successors, many special techniques have gradually been lost, and urgent rescue and protection are needed. Wei Pingjun (official archival record of the associated inheritor): Male, of Han ethnicity, born in March 1962, a native of Qinyang City, Henan Province. In 1982 he learned stilt walking and the carrying of the fire sedan from the performers Liu Fenglou and Zhang Shengming, and went on stage as one of the principal sedan bearers. He not only mastered highly refined performance techniques but was also brave in inheriting and innovating: he gradually raised the stilts from 0.8 metres high in 2000 to a height of 1.5 metres, changed the carrying from the shoulders to the top of the head, and changed movement from purely forward-and-back walking to turning and travelling in all four directions. He actively took part in various cultural exchange activities, enriching the performance forms and content of the high-carried fire sedan on the basis of preserving the essential character of the item. Over many years he has persisted in training new blood to join the performance troupe, giving the item renewed vitality. Representative inheritor of stilt walking (high-carried fire sedan), a national-level intangible cultural heritage project in the fifth batch.
05 · Associated Representative Bearers
Representative bearers recorded under this item, organized by national nomination batch:
- Xing Chuanpei 02-0357
- Yang Min 03-0915
- Wang Xinhui 03-0916
- Duan Tiecheng 04-1561
- Zhang Zhongxian 05-2214
- Wang Zonglu 05-2215
- Wei Pingjun 05-2216
- Juhaiquan 05-2217
- Wang Jixian
06 · Authoritative Sources & Bibliography
Sources
China Intangible Cultural Heritage Network (ihchina.cn)
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