No name, no money, only this one volume; green for thousands of years, mountains and rivers are boundless. Yesterday, the dance poetry drama "Only This Green" - the dance painting "A Thousand Miles of Rivers and Mountains" ushered in the 500th performance in Shanghai Cultural Square. After 968 days of birth and travel to 62 cities, this popular dance drama is still hard to find, and as of now, all the ticketed shows have been sold out. At the same time, the Oriental Song and Dance Troupe will start an overseas tour with its works, and after the Singapore stop in March, "Green Waist" will also enter Turkey, Canada, Russia, Japan and other countries and regions.
"It is our important work to explain and introduce to the world more excellent cultures with Chinese characteristics, embodying the Chinese spirit and containing Chinese wisdom. Jing Xiaoyong, Secretary of the Party Committee and Chairman of China Oriental Performing Arts Group, told reporters that at present, "Only This Green" is making efforts to meet the needs of domestic and international tours, and is striving towards the goal of 1,000 tours.
Leave the most beautiful "green imprint" in Shencheng
"In the 500th performance of "Only This Green", we used the original cast of the premiere to leave the most beautiful 'green mark' on the Shanghai stage. Editor-in-chief Zhou Liya said. After last night's performance, many audience members were reluctant to leave for a long time. They enthusiastically shared their experience of watching the show, among which "dozens of dramas" abounded. "I've seen more than 70 performances!" Dandan said, following "Only This Green" for more than two years, "Just travel with 'Green', and I have also experienced an artistic journey across time and space over and over again." ”
The dancers crossed the four seasons and mountains and seas, and went in both directions with 500 performances and "scrollers", which aroused strong resonance from the audience. The venue was full, tickets were sold out immediately, and the audience waited in long lines in the front lobby and backstage...... These co-generated theatrical stories give birth to a precious and unique "green" experience. On the Xiaohongshu platform, young audiences communicate with the main creators and actors.
Why does a dance drama about paintings of the Northern Song Dynasty enter the hearts of contemporary youth? Behind the "green fever", it profoundly reflects the love of contemporary young people for the excellent traditional Chinese culture. On the stage, the researchers of the Forbidden City and the painters of the Northern Song Dynasty traveled through time and space, looking at each other. The aspiration of the ancients to "paint this painting with heaven and earth" and the desire of cultural and museum workers to adhere to traditional culture overlap and connect at this moment. "With the same heart and mind that spans thousands of years, "Only This Green" has become a contemporary theme closely related to today's people. Chief editor Han Zhen said.
Through dance vocabulary and poetic expression, Only This Green brings people into the legendary artistic conception of traditional Chinese aesthetics. Young actor Meng Qingyang led the dance "Green Waist", showing a sense of flow of thousands of miles of rivers and mountains, which is the signature movement of the dance drama. "The seemingly simple 'Mochizuki' gesture, we rehearsed for more than a month. In her impression, during the creation and rehearsal of the dance drama, there was a classroom that was picking out the details of the "green" dance section from beginning to end, so much so that the actors joked that the play was "only green and green". "Although the movement has been honed to perfection in the classroom, it is the stage that is the real test. Meng Qingyang revealed that "Only This Green" was revised four times during the tour. "After the premiere of the NCPA in 2021, we made adjustments as soon as we arrived in Shanghai for the first leg of our tour. ”
500 performances have witnessed the common growth of "Only This Green" and the actors. "At the end of each performance, I bow reverently to the stage, not only to pay homage to the ancients I have performed, but also to today's cultural and museum workers. Zhang Han, a young actor who plays "Ximeng", said, "It seems that there is always a force to protect us, so that the difficult performances can be 'one hundred performances' and be completed smoothly." ”
Let dance become the "universal language" of interpreting Chinese aesthetics
Deeply cultivating the industrialization of stage art works is an important way for the creative transformation, innovative development and cultural consumption upgrading of China's excellent traditional culture. In the field of dance drama creation, "Only This Green" can be regarded as a high-quality representative, and China Oriental Performing Arts Group is deeply exploring the core value of "green" cultural IP and shaping stronger Chinese cultural symbols, while constantly exploring cross-border integration and the innovative development of traditional culture.
At present, "Only This Green" has completed the filming of the movie version and the high-definition drama live version. The movie version of "Only This Green" was created and starred by the original cast of the dance drama. According to the main creative team, the uniqueness of this film is that there is not a single line or dialogue in the whole film, hoping to "witness the priceless treasure from scratch in the subtleties, and make dance a universal language for interpreting Chinese aesthetics".
"Only This Green" will also expand new fields such as cultural tourism and performing arts, digital works, open up the production and marketing links of cultural and creative derivatives, and promote the iterative innovation of art products. Located at No. 4 East Third Ring North Road, Chaoyang District, Beijing, the "Green Space" has been put into operation, and the space rich in classical connotations is widely loved. The tourism and performing arts version of "Only This Green" has also made important progress, integrating the application of digital technology, immersive interpretation, interactive experience, innovative stage art and other international cutting-edge artistic means. In addition, "Only This Green" has also co-branded with dozens of manufacturers such as Agricultural Bank of China, Guoquan Gold, and China Resources C'estbon to strengthen brand empowerment and inject cultural foundations.
It is reported that "Only This Green" will launch a new round of performances in Shanghai Cultural Square in July, bringing the aesthetics and traditional charm of the Great Song Dynasty to the theater space again. "We aspire to provide the audience with a new perspective, a more contemporary way of presenting it, and to make people rethink the value and significance of traditional culture in the current context, so as to feel the poetry, charm and strong vitality of Chinese culture that has lasted for thousands of years. Fei Yuanhong, deputy general manager of Shanghai Culture Square, believes that to a certain extent, it is as mellow and far-reaching as the theater.