Sixty years of tumbling on stage
Beijing
The capital city is famous for acrobatic performances, especially those by the China National Acrobatic Troupe. Qin Zhongwei finds out how it celebrates 60 years on stage.
An old Chinese saying goes: "Three minutes of glory in the spotlight takes 10 years of effort off-stage" - and among all the traditional Chinese performing arts, acrobatics proves this adage most true.
The ease with which the acrobats show off their perfect balance, great physical strength and precise control of movements shows the hard work that earns them the prolonged applause and awed admiration at the end of each show. For some, such performances distill the achievements and developments of the art over six decades.
To celebrate its 60th anniversary, the China National Acrobatic Troupe is staging a brand-new themed show at the Great Hall of the People, one of Beijing's landmark performing venues. A Letter Home from Oct 19 to 20 will showcase the troupe's proudest achievements and award-winning acts.
The birthday performance will not be just a simple succession of acts, it will merge the troupe's traditional applause winners as well as newly developed acts - all linked by the story of a young acrobat who battles against all odds to become a sensation on stage.
The narrative is also a mirror of the troupe's own development.
Founded in 1950, a year after the founding of People's Republic of China, the troupe was also the first to have brought China's traditional acrobatic arts and their breath-taking performances abroad.
Through the years, especially when the art seemed to have lost its popularity, the troupe persisted, putting effort and energy into innovations and acts that slowly attracted fans back into the theaters. One such show: The ground-breaking Goodbye UFO, an unconventional performance launched in 2009 that explored new themes such as extra-terrestrials and environmental protection.
Over the last 60 years, the troupe has visited nearly 100 countries and won scores of awards in international and domestic competitions, including the prestigious Golden Clown Award at the International Circus Festival in Monte Carlo and the President's Award at the 26th International Circus Festival of Tomorrow in France.
The month-long anniversary this year also features a revised version of its most popular show in recent years, Splendid, at the Poly Theater this weekend, with a performance Saturday and today. This show and the big-scale Li Ning's Magic Legend will then go on tour within China.
On Oct 28, the troupe will host an "open day" for fans to watch their daily training and rehearsals at its campus in South Beijing. For details, please go to www.cncircus.com.
(China Daily 10/10/2010 page15)
