China.org.cn: The Overbridge Bar Acrobatics -- infuse the vibrancy of folk arts into the central axis of Beijing

BEIJING,Feb. 9,2022 -- A news report by China.org.cn on China's intangible cultural heritage:

Before the eve of the 2022 Spring Festival,a group of Chinese young students together with international students who stay for the Spring Festival visited the inheritors of intangible cultural heritage to enjoy for the first time the charm of China's intangible cultural heritage and to learn about the stories behind it.

 

The Spring Festival is one of the most important traditional festivals in China,with a large scale of folk activities to be carried out during this period. In 1985,there was afancinating spectacle at the first DitanParkSpring Festival temple fair. The crowd gathered in front of a horizontal bar and watched the performer makinga series of actions that ordinary people had never seen before. The crowdwere all stunned and applauded at the scene. This is theartistic performance ofthe Overbridage Bar Acrobatics. The emergence of the temple fair has enrichedthe connotation of bar performance and made possible its spread from royal court to the common people,whcih has become a popular performance.

Beforethe2022Spring Festival,Li Chenghe and Sandos,two international student from Mali and San tome and Principe,visited the third and fourth generation inheritorsCao Anlai and Hu Jiyuan. After Cao anlai's explanationof the techniques,the two international students also experienced getting onto abar under the protection of two ICHinheritors,and personally tried and completed the wave swinging,leg hanging and other movements.

As early as 2000 years ago,Overbridge Bar Acrobaticswas a popular performance among nobles at that time. It was also recorded in historical books onEmperor Yang's visit to Yangzhou inthe Sui Dynasty. In modern society,bar performancegradually came to be known by the common people and was foundin temple fairs and other folk activities,which helped it gain popularity amongthe masses. Nowadays,it is an important way of fitnessfor many people. In Beijing's parks,we can often see buffs of this sport on the bar,which makes it known to more people.

There were oringally 108 gymnastic movementsfortraditional Overbridge Bar Acrobatics,andthey have developed into more than 200movements,which fallinto three categories: the upper,middle and lower activities. "the Upper Play" refers to various kinds of handstands completed at the position above the bar,such as two fingerhandstand,handstand with splayed legsetc.. "the Middle Play" refers to all kinds of body rotations and swingsaround the bar,such as spinning wheel and shrunken neckpassing. "the Lower Play" refers to various hanging actions completed under the bar,such as duck floating,front duckmove and rear duckmove. Each movementhas the characteristics of thrilling,rareness,particularity and uniqueness.

In recent years,in the series of activities of applying for the world culture heritage forBeijing central axis,the Overbridge Bar Acrobaticshas played an important roleand infused the vibrancy of folk artsinto Beijing central axis.

After theactivity,the international students said that the trip was a brand new experience. Although I saw the wonderful movementsperformed by the teacher and learned skills,when I myself got onthe bar,I still felt thatI was not ready for itandmy strength was insufficient,which really verified the saying"oneminute of performance on the stagetakesten years of practice ".

Li Cheng and Sandos admitted that if they don't come to China,they will never be able to watch,understand and experience Chinese traditional folk arts. "I hope the Overbridge Bar Acrobatics will becomemore popularized in daily life and will be knownby people frommore countries and regions."

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