In the late Qing Dynasty, due to the extreme desire for poverty and luxury within the ruling clique, the society at that time was extremely dim, and the common people were even more miserable. As the de facto ruler of the late Qing Dynasty, although Empress Dowager Cixi claimed to be obedient to the government, in her eyes the emperor was just a decoration, and the two generations of emperors were toyed with by her. It can be said that she turned the entire Qing Dynasty into her private stage and let it be squandered. And from the old photos handed down at that time, we can also find that the people's expressions are numb and unfocused, especially the women in the palace are "ugly".
For example, the concubines of the Guangxu Emperor, Empress Longyu look very general, and the history books record that they are skinny and rugged and a little hunched; although Concubine Jin and Concubine Zhen are sisters, the appearance of the two is very different, and the palace calls her Fat Niangniang. As for the appearance of Empress Dowager Cixi herself, we can find out through the palace photos left behind. But to say that the late Qing Dynasty beauty, everyone will generally think of Zhenfei and Wanrong, in fact, there is really a beautiful female official around Cixi, she is proficient in dance, and later married a major general, and her temperament in her later years is still charming!
This person was Yu Rongling, a female official of the Cixi Imperial Court, who was born in the late Qing Dynasty and was a Manchu Bannerman of the White Banner han army. Yu Rongling's life is full of legends, she used the best time to do what she liked, becoming the first Chinese in the history of modern Chinese dance to learn European, American and Japanese dance, and the only Chinese who had personally learned dance from isadora Duncan, the originator of modern dancers. As a dancer in the late Qing Dynasty, Yu Rongling was praised by the Parisian audience as the "Butterfly Dance Queen" of the East at the age of 13, and his main representative works include "Rose and Butterfly", "Fan Dance", "Greek Dance" and "Qing Palace Trivia", which are impressive.
As a wealthy lady born in a feudal dynasty, Yu Rongling's achievements are mainly due to her enlightened father, Yu Geng, who was a diplomat in the late Qing Dynasty. In 1895, his father Yu Geng (a Yipin official) became a minister to Japan, and the 6-year-old Yu Rongling lived with his father in Japan with his family. Because Yu Rongling has loved dance since she was a child, during her stay in Japan, in addition to learning the compulsory homework, she was also sent by her parents to learn Japanese dance at the famous local dance training institution, Momijikan. Later, because of his father's status as a diplomat, Yu Rongling also became acquainted with the Japanese high ceremonial officer Nagasaki, and learned diplomatic etiquette and music, classical dance, and art flower arrangement from him.
In Japan, Yu Rongling has already laid the foundation for her dance by learning various dances from well-known teachers, but these are only part of her resume. Later, her father, Yu Geng, was transferred to the French Minister because of his excellent political performance, and Yu Rongling, who was already 11 years old at this time, changed his living environment. This time, the life tour in Paris, France, is more colorful than in Japan. While in Paris, Yu Rongling, who had a great talent and passion for dance, met the founder of modern dance, Isadora Duncan, whose dance talent was appreciated by Duncan and played a role in the ancient Greek mythological dance drama created by Duncan.
Duncan's progressive ideas of pursuing individual liberation and freedom deeply influenced her, and later Yu Rongling also studied ballet from Sanaphni, a famous professor at the French National Opera. This experience deeply affected her, both talented and hardworking, and it seems that fame is a matter of course. Finally, in 1902, the 13-year-old Yu Rongling publicly performed dance dramas such as "Rose and Butterfly", "Ophelia", "Spanish Dance" and other dance dramas in Paris, which caused a sensation in Paris, won the praise of the audience, and was praised by the Parisian audience as the "butterfly dance queen" of the East. Yu Rongling also became the first person to dance ballet in China.
In 1903, Yu Geng returned to China at the end of his term, and Yu Rongling, who had successfully studied, also returned to China with his father. Influenced by Western culture since childhood, Yu Rongling needs to be liberated from her personality and advocates the pursuit of freedom, and after returning to China, she seems to be a little out of place compared with others. However, Yu Rongling was a person who had seen the world after all, and Empress Dowager Cixi also wanted to know more about life in foreign countries after experiencing the humiliation of the Eight-Nation Alliance's capture of Beijing. When Cixi first met Yu Rongling, she felt that she had an extraordinary temperament and studied both Chinese and Western, so she left her in the palace as a "female official before the imperial court". Because of her knowledge and popularity, Cixi also gave Yu Rongling the title of Lord of Shanshou County, and allowed her to wear a Western-style dress to enter and leave Ouchi as a former imperial translator and world knowledge consultant.
Since entering the palace, Yu Rongling has begun her career as a court dancer, and it is also the most frequent period of her life engaged in dance creation and performance activities. From entering the palace to leaving the palace in 1907, in just 3 years, Yu Rongling created and performed about five or six dance works with Chinese style, including "Sword Dance", "Fan Dance", "Bodhisattva Dance", "Lotus Fairy Dance" and so on. However, Yu Rongling's creation is not completely Westernized, but absorbs the essence of Chinese folk dance and Peking Opera dance, and retains the charm of Chinese to the greatest extent. In the imperial palace of the Qing Dynasty at that time, Yu Rongling was more beautiful because of his handsome appearance since childhood, especially when he traveled abroad, and his mastery of dance talent, Rong Ling was naturally known as the most beautiful female official around Cixi!
In this way, Yu Rongling, who stayed by Cixi's side, worked until 1907, when she ended her four years of court life due to her father's serious illness and went to Shanghai to serve her sick father. After the fall of the Qing Dynasty, Yu Rongling was not delayed by her experience as a palace official of the Qing Dynasty, and she actively participated in public welfare charity performances and spread her dance culture to all parts of the country. In her dances, we can see the kindness of the dancers and the compassion for the toiling people, which can often make people cry and be thought-provoking.
It is worth mentioning that Yu Rongling met his true destiny in 1912 and married Tang Baochao, who had the rank of major general, in Paris, France. After marrying Tang Baochao, Yu Rongling is still active in the social circles of Beiping, because of his long-term participation in dance work, Yu Rongling's temperament is elegant, and he shows everyone's demeanor everywhere, so he is deeply respected by everyone. At that time, in the "Dictionary of Chinese Dance", Yu Rongling entered the dictionary as "the first dancer in modern times".
After the founding of New China, because Yu Rongling was proficient in ethnic dance, Yu Rongling eventually became a librarian of the Central Museum of Culture and History at the nomination of Premier Zhou. Later, many reporters and writers visited the 72-year-old Yu Rongling in order to understand the dance culture of the Qing Palace and the history of modern chinese dance. Perhaps because she has been practicing dance for many years, yu Rongling's mental state has always been very good in her old age, and her temperament is still charming, and people who have seen her will be impressed by the elegance of her! Until 1973, the elderly Rong Ling died of illness in Peking University Hospital at the age of 84, it can be said that she used her life to interpret "late twilight is still beautiful, the end is still aristocratic".
Looking back on the legendary life of Yu Rongling, although she was born in the Manchu Qing noble family, because she loved dance, she could break through the pressure and shackles of feudal etiquette, insist on learning to devote herself to dance art with perseverance, introduce foreign dance art to China through court performances, and strive to use her knowledge and skills learned abroad to create and perform works with Chinese style, which is very valuable, she is the first person in China to learn Eastern and Western dance in the Qing Dynasty. In 2012, in order to commemorate the 123rd anniversary of Yu Rongling's birth, dance historians from all over the country will gather in Tianjin to hold the "Yu Rongling Dance Art Forum" ”