Video: Above the steel pipe, the spinning old man. Produced by the Beijing News "Peeling Onions"
Alternating between old and new wounds, a little bruise and soy sauce-colored blood scabs stayed on Dai Dali's toes, instep, calves, knees and thighs for a long time.
She couldn't get rid of them, and as long as she wanted to dance in the air, her body and stainless steel tube grinding and bumping were inevitable. She said that she endured the pain to dance well.
Eleven years ago, Dai Dali, 64, first learned pole dancing at a gym in Chengdu. Five years later, she won the laurels of pole dancing and ring dancing in the senior group at the 9th China Pole Dance Championships, and at the age of 71, she won this award again.
As of now, the 75-year-old, known in public reports as China's oldest pole dancer, sees the pipe as a horizontal bar that stands in the air. The rhythmic music sounded, she jumped up, and in one song, she was both an athlete and a dancer, and the power and beauty complemented each other, sometimes the clamp spiraled up, and sometimes the hanger fell rapidly.
She said to keep dancing like the steel pipe that wouldn't rust.
Dai Dali on a steel pipe at home, in August 2018. Courtesy of respondents
"China's Oldest Pole Dancer"
The dance school and home are separated by bus stops, and the journey takes about 22 minutes. At her leisure, Dai Dali had to attend classes five times a week, one and a half hours each time.
But in the last six months, she has gone less. In January this year, she underwent cataract surgery on both eyes, and according to the doctor's advice, she needed to rest after the operation and strictly prohibited collisions. Pole dancing, which is physically demanding and has a high risk factor, was suspended for about four months.
The surgery has been delayed again and again. As early as five years ago, Dai Dali, who was diagnosed with cataracts, was advised by doctors to implant intraocular lenses as soon as possible. But she kept dragging, afraid to do the operation, until the E-word at the top of the eye chart was blurred, "mainly worried about various precautions after the operation, afraid of not being able to dance pole dancing." ”
Pole dancing supported Dai Dali's old age.
At the age of 59, her husband died of illness, and it took her nearly a year and a half to barely get out of the bottom of her emotions. After moving to her eldest daughter's house, she helped with logistics, buying vegetables, cooking, cleaning, washing hands, and then going downstairs to dance square dance. It wasn't much different from the retirement time she had envisioned.
In the blink of an eye, at the age of 64, the eldest daughter "cut first and play later" gave her a fitness card, in order not to waste money, she still went hard. The folk dance class in the gym immediately became her favorite, and when she was a teenager, she practiced folk dance for three years at a drama school in Chengdu. It is hard to imagine that the seeds of dance planted many years ago can still sprout after she is over sixty years old.
And pole dancing gives this seed the opportunity to blossom. At the beginning of the story, almost every interview, she will be asked, "All said Jiao (Chengdu dialect, referring to over and over again). One day at the age of 64, in a room with several steel pipes in the gym, a little girl danced around the steel pipes so that she could not open her eyes, she had never seen such a strange dance in the air, it was not clear whether the girl was spinning on the steel pipe, or the steel pipe was driving her to rotate.
From that day on, she joined the pole dancing class at the gym, taking two one-hour classes a week. Once, the pole dancing teacher at the gym said to a student in front of her, "You see Aunt Dai is in her 50s and still working so hard." It was then that she realized that the teacher did not know her true age when he agreed to accept her.
Before retiring, she was a distributor at Chengdu Xinhua Bookstore and was named a Model Worker in Chengdu in the 1990s for her excellent work. Due to years of packing books, she suffered from tenosynovitis in both hands. This occupational disease caused her to lack strength in her hands when holding the tube.
For beginners, it is imperative to take the tube first, which is a prerequisite for learning other tube skills. Dai Dali practiced this basic action for a long time, "I can't remember how long it takes, anyway, it's not a matter of three or five days." Because the whole body is not strong enough. ”
The action goes from simple to difficult. Injuries are commonplace, especially the insteps and large and small leg parts that are most frequently rubbed with steel pipes, always scarred, "good and worn, peeled places to paste Band-Aids." "With the skill of the skill, the bruises are less, but bumps are inevitable.
Most of the bruises of the other young students were in pieces, and Dai Dali's body was dotted. She analyzed that this was not unrelated to her aging muscles and the state of her sagging skin.
In the third year of the entrance, she was invited to participate in the "China's Got Talent", showing a series of pole dancing skills such as flag pulling, space walking, speed skating, and one-word horses, which amazed Yang Wei, the Olympic champion of gymnastics under the stage, and he told Dai Dali that many young people in today's society have not yet accepted pole dancing, and although she is more than sixty years old, she has the courage to challenge such a difficult sport, which is really rare.
At the age of 69, when she participated in the 9th China Pole Dance Championships, she learned from the China Pole Dance Association that she was the oldest pole dancer in China.
This name has not yet fallen to others.
Dai Dali was in the dance school classroom on July 6, her legs and feet full of marks. Beijing News reporter Wu Linshu photographed
Endured the pain, and only then did I dance a pole dance well
Eight years ago, Dai Dali came to the current dance school. The enlightenment teacher told her that at dance school, she could learn more advanced skills.
Wang Jiancheng, then 23, was her second teacher. Wang Jian had heard of Dai Dali long ago, but when he took over this student, he was still quite worried, "The teaching and training methods are definitely different from other students, her hand grip is not strong enough, what should I do if I fall?" ”
Concerns are diminishing day by day. Off the stage, Dai Dali is hardworking and not afraid of tiredness. The basic skills seem simple, but it is not easy to do it in place. Dai Dali, who lacks core strength, attaches great importance to basic skills, and strives to make every movement meet the standards and be clean.
"She never cut corners." Wang Jian, a first-class judge at the China Pole Dancing Championships, said Dai Dali was best at spacewalking, "V-control", speed skating and various "one-word horses". These few actions have high requirements for basic skills, which test the flexibility and control of the body. For the elderly Dai Dali, every skill is a challenge.
Dai Dali said that when people reach old age, there are too many excuses to give up, such as the sleepless night after being injured, the dissuasion of her daughter and relatives after slipping from the steel pipe and falling to the ground, the blurred vision and black shadows caused by cataracts... And the thought of being on a steel pipe, the physical and mental comfort when rotating in the air, the sense of achievement after learning new skills, and the "Dai Big Sister, not to see that you are still dancing, I don't want to dance" that some elderly dancers often hang on their lips, the pain and tiredness disappear when they disappear.
In 2017, NBC's "Little Big Shots: Forever Young" program invited her to fly to Los Angeles to perform pole dancing. When she went to the Chengdu U.S. Consulate to sign, she brought a bunch of photos of her pole dancing, and showed them to the visa officer one by one, who felt incredible, looked at her for a moment, and asked her with a Chinese, "Are you sure you went to perform pole dancing?" Then, the visa officer showed the photo to two or three colleagues, and after confirming that it was Dai Dali himself, they gave Dai Dali a thumbs up, "Come on." ”
In order to let foreign audiences feel the beauty of the Orient, she wore a long purple cheongsam to appear on the show. In the performance session, Dai Dali, who changed into a purple dance dress and silver high heels, quickly put on the tube, speed skating, rotating, leg bending upside down and other actions in one go, and finally ended with a clean and neat cross fork, and the whole audience stood up and cheered. "She's 71 years old!" Moderator Steve Harvey stressed.
On July 6, Dai Dali showed a word horse in the dance school classroom. Beijing News reporter Wu Linshu photographed
Dai Dali said that on the world stage, let more foreigners know that There is an old lady who dances pole dancing in China and shows the style of the elderly in China, and she is very proud.
During her recovery from cataract surgery, she pushed off foreign program invitations and began to study live broadcasts and shoot short videos at home.
"China's oldest aerial dance athlete." In my 70s after retirement, I just wanted to be myself. She wrote in a profile of a short video platform.
"Dance is beautiful, people are more beautiful." On July 7, someone commented below a video. In the video, Dai Dali in a blue dress climbs, rotates, and walks around the steel pipe, and the background is added to the blue sky and white clouds, which is the special effect she learned, giving people a visual effect of her dancing in the clouds.
"People are beautiful, people don't see clearly." Dai Dali replied. She knows very well that her facial features in the video are not clear. Anyone who knows her knows that she would be happier if she changed the tone of the comment to "people are beautiful, dance is more beautiful.".
"What I jumped out of was the power beauty"
In the afternoon of July 6, Dai Dali, who had not trained for half a month, appeared at the dance school. Another dress with a pair of 5cm high heels is her favorite summer dress style for many years. Less than 1.55 meters tall, she often laughs at herself for being short, high heels are a must for going out on the street, even if it is to buy vegetables in the market, she does not wear flat shoes, "high heels show temperament." ”
She put on light makeup and her eyes were slightly tired. She explained that these two days of sleeping late and getting up late, while learning to study and do small video special effects, but also to reply to the media found, "You see, I need to reply to the recent need to reply to the top of WeChat, several pages can not be finished." ”
But her tired body also reminded her that it was time to pick up more muscular memories. She didn't dare to slack off.
Thirteen 3.5-meter-long steel pipes were evenly distributed in the classroom with a large face of glass, and she stood in the innermost part after changing into a dance dress, and in front of the familiar pink silicone steel pipe, the glasses of about 300 degrees on her nose were removed and put into her bag. Followed by the teacher to do several sets of head and shoulders chest waist and hip warm-up and dynamic stretching, sweat beads rolled down from the forehead, sideburns, "No, no "She felt a little overwhelmed by her physical strength.
On July 6, in the dance school classroom, Dai Dali was practicing vertical forks. Beijing News reporter Wu Linshu photographed
When it came to the most "devilish" leg soft opening, she moved five foam bricks, stacked them on the front of the yoga mat, placed her right foot on the highest place, buried her head forward on her calf, and pulled her right leg backwards in a vertical fork. After pressing for about 6 minutes, everyone tied a small sandbag to their ankles and did leg lifting exercises, and when Teacher Wang pressed the back of their feet one by one, the shouts of "Oh it hurt" rose and fell in the classroom.
Dai Dali, whose lips were tightly closed and had not said a word for a long time, finally did not hold back and shouted: "It hurts! She shook her head repeatedly, "Alas, I haven't practiced for a long time, and now I can't do it." ”
For more than a year, Dai Dali often went to the fitness facility area of the community to hang single and double poles, split forks on the bars, and exercise arm strength. There is a steel pipe in the house, and when she feels that her hands and feet are stiff, she will jump up and twist it. However, after the cataract surgery, she reduced her exercise by a lot.
After reviewing a few movements, Dai Dali who came down from the tube with her back against the wall gasped, and a small dancer who looked to be in her early 20s leaned over and stared at her face, "Aunt Dai, did you cut your double eyelids?" ”
"Of course not! I haven't slept enough in the past two days, my eyelids are swollen, and I look like I have a line. Dai Dali smiled, walked to the front of the pink silicone steel pipe, slammed an upside down, legs apart to the left and right, the right arm was clamped on the steel pipe, and made a crotch horse, "Teacher Wang, you help me see, my legs are straight?" ”
For the dance moves demonstrated, Dai Dali has her own standards and requirements. Just spacewalking, the excellent Dai Dali walked five times.
Sometimes, she would ask, "Didn't my neckline slip?" "Oh Aunt Dai, why are you so conservative?" The little dancer not far away heard it and couldn't help but interject.
Dai Dali knows that the word "sexy" is not pejorative, but she believes that her dancing style has nothing to do with sexiness. After being exposed to pole dancing, she learned that the pole dance she learned to strengthen her body has a different meaning in the wind and moon places in Europe and the United States.
She said that the pole dance she danced was a fashion movement that combined force and beauty, "What I danced was power beauty." ”
Five or six years ago, some people commented that she was an "old monster", believing that her pole dancing was "disrespectful for the old". At first she was particularly angry, and under the guidance of her daughter, she ignored it. Nowadays, Dai Dali looks back and thinks that this is just a "colloquial saying" said by "laymen", "What is the age of the people now?" What's the matter with them? I love to jump, I'm going to jump. The people who say these things, I don't think even the steel pipe can climb up. ”
"Jump until you can't jump"
In the eyes of many colleagues, Dai Dali, who used to deal with books all day, has an introverted personality, few words, and is not good at words. Dai Dali said that since dancing pole dancing, frequently appearing on shows, and often dealing with the media, the two daughters feel that her words have become more and her personality has become more cheerful.
In addition to pole dancing, she is also trying to live her little life well.
Every week, she would take half a day to practice folk dance at another dance school, except for special circumstances. There is time to tease and walk the white Pomeranian raised by her daughter. Every two or three days, she went to a small supermarket nearby to buy vegetables, fruits, eggs and meat, and she was responsible for the food in the eldest daughter's home. Sunday is family day, the family banquet is generally handled by her, cold lettuce, watercress is her "reserved program". Over seventy years old, she is still spicy, "I like to eat skewers the most, and my mouth will not foam when I eat it." ”
"Mother, what are you going to eat today?" This is the most asked sentence of the eldest grandson who has just graduated from high school when he is at home.
In the eyes of her daughter, her mother lives a very delicate life, going out to draw eyebrows, wipe eyeshadow, apply mascara, and apply lipstick; rarely see her wearing flat shoes outside; she will make up lipstick after eating; and from time to time she will go to do a light treatment nail.
In order to avoid the mask from making up, she also carried a mask lining bracket with her, "so that the lipstick will not rub on the mask and the glasses will not fog." ”
Many people ask her for tips on staying young, and in her opinion, exercise is crucial. She felt that pole dancing had helped her stay away from crutches and wheelchairs.
On July 6, Dai Dali demonstrated her flag-pulling skills in the dance school classroom. Beijing News reporter Wu Linshu photographed
Dai Dali found that after dancing pole dancing, the flexibility and coordination of the body became better, the muscles and skin became tighter, the mentality was more confident, and the muscle weakness caused by tenosynovitis also improved a lot. I'm not saying that old people have to dance pole dancing, there are many ways to exercise, the key is to find what suits you and likes. ”
Second, it is to maintain curiosity about new things, "Don't feel that you are old, and actively give up learning about new things." When I meet someone I don't understand, I like to ask young people and I don't feel embarrassed. She mentioned that there are many Internet hot words like "Versailles", "inner volume" and so on, and she also knows the meaning.
"Then you make a sentence out of 'Versailles.'"
"It's not me 'Versailles,' the spacewalk is something I can do with my eyes closed."
Dai Dali especially likes the acrobatic skill of "pulling the flag", holding the steel pipe with both hands up and down, the body hanging upside down on the side of the steel pipe, the sole of one foot close to the steel pipe, and the other leg backwards. After the action is in place, the whole person looks like an unfolded flag.
She enjoyed the feeling of flying in the air.
At the moment, she didn't want to stop the flag and "jump until she couldn't jump." ”
Text | Beijing News reporter Wu Linshu edited | Hu Jie
Choreographer | Beijing News reporter Qi Houlei photographed | Beijing News reporter Wu Linshu
Proofreading 丨 Wu Xingfa