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Shaolin monks in action.
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Shaolin in the Wind "scaffold" sequence.
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Shaolin
in the Wind is a drama in which Shaolin Temple stories
are told in the form of modern dance.
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Shaolin in the Wind is a collocation of martial arts,
folk music and dance performed by monks from the Shaolin Temple,
home of Chinese martial arts, and the cream of the Zhengzhou Song
and Dance Troupe. The play is China’s latest theatrical export
to North America. Preparations, in the form of a reworked script
and presentation, are currently underway for a projected 800-performance
tour of the US later this year.
China’s performing arts are making their presence on overseas
stages, but only two have been well received in North America:
Along the Silk Road, a drama created from Tang murals in the Mogao
Grottoes, and the stage version of Zhang Yimou’s Raise
the Red Lantern. As Impressions of Yunnan, a drama
based on ethnic minority culture in Yunnan Province, was a resounding
flop in the US, despite high acclamation at home, much hope is
pinned on the success of Shaolin in the Wind.
An Old Tale Told in Contemporary Mode
Shaolin in the Wind is a poignant love story. Its main
characters are the star-crossed lovers Tianyuan and Sushui, separated
during a warring invasion. Tianyuan is badly injured and nursed
back to health by the monks of Shaolin Temple. Unbearable yearning
for his sweetheart, who is in the hands of the enemy, compels
him to fanatical study of the martial arts. Years later, the lovers
are reunited, but all too briefly as Sushui sacrifices herself
in order to save Tianyuan from the enemy. Incensed with grief,
Tianyuan leads the Shaolin monks in expelling the enemy. He thereafter
dedicates himself to Buddhism and the martial arts.
The drama combines Chinese kungfu and terpsichorean arts with
elements of China’s original 3,600-year-long Central Plains
culture, whose hub was Henan Province. Its choreography is inspired
by traditional Henan folk dances and its music by folk songs,
ditties and opera airs played on the suona, a kind of trumpet,
the stringed sanxian and other instruments endemic to the
region. Stage designer Huang Kaifu pays personal homage to Shaolin
Temple in his stage scenarios. They encompass reproductions in
actual size of the stone lions at the temple entrance, pagodas
that mark the final resting place of venerable monks and the drum
and bell that summon monks to their morning and evening prayers.
The stage backdrop is a giant image of the beatifically smiling
face of Buddha. Shaolin monks display their martial excellence
upon an artistic sprawl of rocks at the rear of the stage. The
ethos of battle is skillfully conveyed by state-of-the-art lighting
techniques in various glowing shades of red. Alternating beams
of red, yellow and gray express the protagonists’ emotions
as the plot progresses. At the play’s climactic ending the
rocks split and emit a white light that intensifies into a blinding
glare, signifying the supremacy of the sun over darkness.
There have been 70 performances of Shaolin in the Wind
across China, including seven in Taiwan, winning it the coveted
Lotus Prize, China’s highest accolade for dance. Zhang Zongcan,
executive editor-in-chief of Dance magazine, defines it as: “The
first drama to fuse dance and martial arts.” Jia Zuoguang,
honorary chairman of China Dancers Association, commends the play
for its detailed devising, production and presentation.
Contemporary Ambitions of an Agricultural Province
These laurels are keenly appreciated by the Henan-based Zhengzhou
Song and Dance Troupe. The play’s box-office returns, which
cover the play’s RMB 10 million investment, are also heartening
as finance is a main issue for all concerned. Troupe member Zhu
Xuan recalls: “Many doubted the wisdom of laying out such
a large amount of cash in a province where many struggle to feed
themselves.” Such doubts had foundation in view of Henan’s
per capita disposable income of urban residents averaging just
RMB 7,200 in 2004. Shaolin in the Wind received stalwart
support from the government in an effort to transform the region
and its people's received image of being backward and redneck.
Zhu continues, “It is difficult to express just how proud
we felt at the success of our tour. Shaolin in the Wind
has effectively proved that there is more to Henan than just historical
sites, and that its performing arts are as compelling as those
of China’s more financially favored provinces and municipalities.”
For Better or for Worse?
Henan residents are thrilled at the prospect of their new image
traveling beyond China’s shores. The Landmark Entertainment
Group beat several other promoters to its purchase - for a cool
US $ 8 million -- of the exclusive rights to stage Shaolin
in the Wind in the US. “We chose Landmark because of its
extensive marketing network and economic clout,” explained
Qi Anqing, head of Zhengzhou Song and Dance Troupe.
But Landmark’s American adaptation has stirred an ants’
nest of controversy. The new script gives predominance to martial
arts and Zen, to many Westerners the most mystical and
fascinating aspect of the Orient, at the cost of the Central Plains
culture element. Many critics insist that the revised script will
obscure the play’s essence. Landmark, however, insists on
its adaptation.
This is no new debate as China continues to make inroads into
world performance arts. Kungfu plus romance has proved
box-office delight in the overseas film market, as demonstrated
by the huge success of Ang Lee’s Crouching Tiger, Hidden
Dragon and Zhang Yimou’s Hero and House of Flying
Daggers. Yet Chinese art circles still harbor doubts as to
whether these glossy productions give a true picture of China.
Zhang Yimou, one of the few internationally successful mainland
directors, is frequently criticized for focusing on the lives
of the poor in China’s less developed regions, both in his
historical and contemporary works. His critics fail to see that
in so doing Zhang celebrates the longstanding culture of humanism
and compassion that they represent, but this is overridden by
the widespread belief that such films reinforce a mistaken stereotype
of China in the world view. Yip Kam Tim, Oscar Award-winning designer,
is the object of similar disapprobation.
“Throughout our creative process we have kept audience preferences
and the market in mind,” states Shaolin in the Wind's
eminent choreographer Feng Shuangbai. “As we are targeting
the international as well as domestic market, combining martial
arts with modern dance techniques and popular art with folk culture
makes sound commercial sense.”
East/West Collision and Collusion
To criticism of changes in the play for its American tour, Qi
Anqing, head of the Zhengzhou Song and Dance Troupe, retorts:
“Chinese culture cannot fail to be omnipresent in the American
adaptation when its core is an ancient Chinese tale. The main
difference between the domestic and overseas versions is that
the latter encompasses an explanation of Zen and kungfu,
both gems of Chinese civilization, for the benefit of a non-Chinese
audience. Complaints that the play is presented in a way that
goes against convention have no basis because American audiences,
having no background in the spirituality that is ingrained in
the Chinese psyche, would otherwise be completely at sea. If we
want Chinese culture in a dramatized form to be truly appreciated
abroad, changes to the original format are vital.” Qi points
out that the folk dances in the play performed for Chinese audiences
are by no means pedantically authentic, and that artistic license
is an accepted aspect of theater. He concludes: “Shaolin
in the Wind's adaptation in order to be appreciated by audiences
in various regions and countries in no way betrays its essential
celebration of Chinese culture.”
Famous Chinese writer Wang Meng once said: “Culture
cannot live in aspic. It thrives on the contact with and influence
of others by a natural process of collision and collusion. A culture
is an organic entity that evolves by being open to and embracing
others.”
Shaolin in the Wind is expected to be a feature of the
opening ceremony of the Chinese Culture Year in Russia next year.
This might also entail adaptations, but perhaps of a lesser magnitude.
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