Text/Yangcheng Evening News all-media reporter Ai Xiuyu intern Wei Qiaoyu
As the founders of the acrobatic project "Ballet on the Shoulder", Wu Zhengdan and Wei Baohua are known as "Evergreen Trees of Acrobatic Art". In 2000, after winning the first prize of the Golden Lion Award of the Fifth National Acrobatic Competition with the Chinese acrobatic "Ballet Opponent Top - The Swan of the East", the two also won a number of heavy awards in the acrobatic community at home and abroad. In 2021, the contemporary acrobatic drama "Hua Di" created by Wu Zhengdan and Wei Baohua opened a global tour from Shanghai, which triggered a wide and heated discussion among the audience.
Wei Baohua Wu Zhengdan
On the stage of Guangdong Satellite TV's "Four Seats of Skill", they are already two seasons old. Talking about the second season of China's first large-scale acrobatic cultural program "Four Seats" that will appear on the screen of Guangdong Satellite TV every Saturday at 21:10 on February 19, they expressed their approval with joy, "This is a stage specially created for acrobats". In an interview with the Yangcheng Evening News reporter, they sincerely expressed their ideas and hopes for the ancient art of the new season of programs and acrobatics.
"Yangcheng Evening News" reported on the page on February 15
Pick A: They want to go to heaven and earth and do everything
Since the first season of "Four Seats of Skill", Wu Zhengdan and Wei Baohua have insisted on evaluating contestants by the professional standards of acrobats. Wu Zhengdan believes that the professionalism of the acrobatic profession is very strong, and for acrobats, professionalism is a must. With the adjustment of the format of the second season, they will also focus on the comprehensive quality of the contestants this time. Wu Zhengdan hopes that the contestants will present a complete work that can bring people the enjoyment of beauty and visual impact. "If you can't take care of both ends, then between technology and art, the most important thing is the sense of work that is integrated."
Linglong Wumei appeared in "Techno Shock Four 2"
Regarding the standard of "A corner" in their minds, Wei Baohua mentioned that there are different categories of acrobatics, whether it is a hand skill, a high-altitude class or a jump class, A corner must be the strongest in its category. On this basis, the A corner can not only simply show technical skills, but also have the ability to shape characters, full emotional expression, dance limb expression ability and good artistic accomplishment.
"It is actually particularly difficult to choose the A-corner of acrobatics", Wu Zhengdan believes, "the dancers do the same action, the highlight of the main actors is the difference in texture, the expression is fuller, and the acrobatic A-corner actor needs to be more perfect - both to be omnipotent in heaven and earth, but also to have good performance ability and artistic sense, as well as the comprehensive ability of other aspects." She sighed: "This is simply no one in the world, it is too difficult!" ”
"Four Seats 2" still gathers the "ceiling" of the acrobatic world
For the outside world's view that "learning acrobatics is too low-cost-effective", they said that this is a misunderstanding.
Wei Baohua, who is now serving as the vice dean of the Dance Academy of Xinghai Conservatory of Music, mentioned that the number of students admitted to dance academies every year is very large, but the reality is that after graduating from undergraduate, a large number of people do not have the opportunity to stand on the professional stage and engage in dance performances. Wu Zhengdan also believes that the base of dancers is large, the threshold is relatively low, but the competition is also fierce, and it is only a few people who can finally stand in the top position, and although the threshold is high, the base of the practitioners is small, "There are many employment opportunities, and excellent acrobats are very sought-after in the performing arts market."
Speaking of creation: Shredding the acrobatic vocabulary and merging it with the plot
In 2021, the contemporary acrobatic drama "Hua Di" created by Wu Zhengdan Wei Baohua started a global tour from Shanghai Station, director Zhao Ming once worked with the two to put the acrobatic short program "Hua Di" on the stage of the 2003 CCTV Spring Festival Gala, after 18 years, they expanded the short film of the previous few minutes into a complete story, and integrated acrobatic, dance, drama, video and other forms of expression, turning the acrobatic art of simply showing skills into a story-based and episodic stage work.
Wu Zhengdan Wei Baohua
Wu Zhengdan told the Yangcheng Evening News reporter that after the performance of "Hua Di" in Shanghai, the response was unexpectedly good. "We did a small survey of the audience who walked into the theater, and 85% of them chose to 'like the show very much and are willing to promote the show.'" On February 14, "Hua Butterfly" launched a tour of 32 performances in 21 cities across the country in Haikou, and then it will also travel to Chongqing, Dalian, Hohhot and other places to meet the audience.
"Acrobatics is a really beautiful art category that doesn't make the audience feel visually tired." Wu Zhengdan sighed. However, it is very difficult to fully integrate acrobatics and plots, and to tell a story with acrobatics. Wei Baohua introduced that when arranging "Butterfly", the general director will set up suitable acrobatic elements according to the needs of the plot paragraph, and shred the acrobatic vocabulary and then integrate it with the plot.
Wu Wei and his wife performed in "Hua Di"
From the art for decades, Wu Zhengdan Wei Baohua, who "added up to 90 years old", is still active on the stage, and it can be said that "acrobat" is the most important identity in their lives. In the face of the stage of getting along day and night, did Wu Zhengdan and Wei Baohua already have the feeling of "being at ease" and "easy to control"?
In the face of the Yangcheng Evening News reporter's questions, the two said in unison that instead of having a sense of ease, the pressure was increasing day by day. Wu Zhengdan said that before he took the stage, he still had a sense of nervousness of "sudden panic and weakness in his body": "I have been acting for twenty or thirty years, and I have been nervous since I first came on stage, and now (not only do I not feel relaxed), but I am getting more and more nervous." ”
Masters gather in "Four Seats 2"
Wu Zhengdan sighed that in the past, as an actor, she felt that as long as she completed this part of her performance, she could do it. But now she is not only an acrobat, but also the manager of the Guangzhou Acrobatic Art Theater, and everything on and off the stage is closely related to her. From the hanging poles and lights on the stage to the entire performance of the play, it has become her responsibility, and this reverence has also become a source of pressure for her: "It may also be because I care more and more about every performance." 」 ”
Talking about the future: Promoting appropriate acrobatic projects into the campus and into the community
As the vice dean of the Dance Academy of Xinghai Conservatory of Music, Wei Baohua put his energy outside of his performance into thinking about acrobatic education. He proposed that in the current art education system in China, art, music, dance, film and television, opera, etc. have long established special colleges and universities, while several professional schools of acrobatics are all authoritarian, and they are still missing in higher education.
Wei Baohua said that he hopes that through research and exploration, he can learn and learn from such a mature education system as dance, so that acrobatics will also become an art category in higher education, which is very helpful for the development of the acrobatic industry." At the same time, he said that the acrobatic profession "not only trains high-end acrobats, but also cultivates acrobatic literacy and thinking writers and acrobatic teachers with thought and taste, so that the acrobatic industry can go further."
The benign development of an industry is inseparable from the influx of fresh blood, Wu Zhengdan and Wei Baohua have seen the highlights of young acrobats while making continuous efforts. Wu Zhengdan said that after participating in the recording of the second season of "Four Seats", his greatest satisfaction was that he "found that many young actors are very thoughtful and pursuing, and I think the industry has quietly undergone some changes."
Actors at home and abroad joined "Four Seats 2"
When participating in the first season of "Four Seats of Skill", they met a lot of top domestic acrobats, coupled with the lineup of the second season, Wu Zhengdan hoped that he could become the initiator, launch a series of performances, build a very exquisite and beautiful team or work, and tour the country, "One of the main purposes is to promote acrobatics, so that the national audience can re-understand and understand acrobatics."
There is also a bell pulling performance in "Butterfly"
Wei Baohua also proposed: "Acrobatics should also enter the lives of the public, so that everyone feels that there is fun and there is room for play, rather than a high-end performance that can only be seen on the stage." Wu Zhengdan mentioned that there are many acrobatics, such as pulling bells, which belongs to the low threshold and many tricks of the old and young: "This is the same as everyone running and practicing athletics in school, the goal is not to become a professional athlete, it is good to be able to strengthen the body." And in acrobatics, activities like pulling bells that test coordination and rhythm are very entertaining. She hopes to use the guidance and support of policy to promote appropriate acrobatic projects into the campus and into the community, so that acrobatics can also become a popular fitness sport.
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Source | Yangcheng Evening News Yangcheng Pie
Image | Program groups
Editor-in-charge | Zhu Fan