Shield dance (rattan dance)

Name of China's national intangible cultural heritage: shield dance (rattan dance)

Applicant: Ruian City, Zhejiang Province

Item No.: 113

Project No.: Ⅲ - 10

Time of publication: 2011 (the third batch)

Category: traditional dance

Region: Zhejiang Province

Type: Extension Project

Applicant: Ruian City, Zhejiang Province

Protection unit: Ruian Intangible Cultural Heritage Protection Center

Introduction to shield dance (rattan dance)

Applicant: Ruian City, Zhejiang Province

Rattan dance is a kind of traditional dance which is popular in Rui'an City and takes rattan as the main props to simulate ancient military training. In the past, because there were so many dances, there were also the appellations of "playing rattan", "rattan array" and "rattan roll" among the masses.

From 1552 to 1561, Ruian was robbed, burned and killed by Japanese pirates six times. Qi Jiguang, a famous general guarding Fujian and Zhejiang, created and trained Zhejiang soldiers, and used rattan as a defensive weapon against the Japanese. As a result, tengpai became the main weapon of the army in Ming and Qing Dynasties, and formed a whole set of sabre and tengpai fighting actions. Later, in temple fairs and some celebrations, Ruian veterans and tuanyong organized their past military training into a rattan array for performance, which was called "playing rattan". Because of the popularity of the people, this activity has continued. In the old days, before and after the Spring Festival and Qingming Festival, rattan dance was performed at various temple fairs in Ruian. In the early Republic of China, Ruian's rattan dance was even more famous in five counties of Wenzhou.

In 1957, tengpai dance went to Beijing to participate in the "second national folk music and dance performance" and won the excellent award.