Stilt (stilt animal)

Name of China's national intangible cultural heritage: stilt (stilt animal)

Applicant: Jishan County, Shanxi Province

Item No.: 112

Project No.: Ⅲ - 9

Time of publication: 2006 (the first batch)

Category: traditional dance

Region: Shanxi Province

Type: new item

Applicant: Jishan County, Shanxi Province

Protection unit: People's cultural center of Jishan County, Shanxi Province

Introduction to stilts

Applicant: Jishan County, Shanxi Province

Stilts, also known as "stilt Yangko", is a kind of folk dance which is widely spread all over the country. It is named for stepping on stilts. Stilts have a long history, which originated from a kind of technical performance in ancient operas. In the Northern Wei Dynasty, there were stone carvings of walking on stilts. Stilts were generally performed in the form of dance teams, with a number of more than ten to dozens of people. Most of the dancers played the role image in an ancient myth or historical story, and their costumes were mostly imitated from opera lines. The common props were fans, handkerchiefs, sticks, knives and guns, etc There are two forms of performance: "stepping on the street" and "abandoning the field". Abandoning the field has "big field" where the dance team dances while walking in various formation patterns, and "small field" where two or three people perform. Most of the characters dance with men and women, and sometimes sing while dancing. The stilts used in different places vary in height from 30cm to 300cm. From the performance style, it can be divided into "Wenqiao" and "Wuqiao", Wenqiao focuses on twisting and stepping and plot performance; Wuqiao focuses on showing off skills.

Stilt animal art is a performance form of temple fair cultural activities in Yangcheng Village, Qinghe town, Jishan County, Shanxi Province. It prevailed in the early years of Yongzheng in the Qing Dynasty, appeared in the large-scale temple fair activities, and has a history of more than 300 years.

Stilt animal is composed of animal head, animal body and performers. During the performance, two people walk on stilts and ride animals. The actors carry heavy loads and walk according to the rhythm of Qupai. The auxiliary music is composed of percussion instruments such as gongs and drums, flower drums, etc. The shapes of human beings and animals are peculiar. When marching in array with the sound of drums, they are magnificent and spectacular. The existing animal images are basically handed down from ancient times. Although they have been repaired many times, their original appearance still exists. The head and body of the animal are made of models by highly skilled artists, sewn and bound with hemp silk, hemp paper, string, bamboo, iron wire, cloth, etc., and painted with various colors. The appearance is powerful and exquisite. Yangcheng Village, Qinghe town, Jishan county is divided into Nanyang city and Beiyang city. The animals in Beiyang city include unicorn, wolf, unicorn, bamboo horse, cat and so on. The animals in Nanyang city include beaver tiger, sika deer, tapir and so on.

This folk dance activity enriches the people's spiritual and cultural life, enhances the unity and harmony between people, and also reflects the local people's good wishes for good weather and good harvest. At present, stilt animal, a folk dance activity, is facing the situation of being out of date. It is urgent to take effective measures to rescue and inherit it.