Yang Liping and Dynamic Yunnan Song and Dance Troupe: Dynamic Yunnan - Search for Shangrila
 
Time:28 – 29 May 2010（Fri - Sat）8pm 
Venue:Grand Theatre, Hong Kong Cultural Centre
Ticket Price:$420, 300, 220, 150

The Classics of 'Peacock Princess' Yang Liping Premieres in Hong Kong
 
In presenting the exotic song and dance spectacular, Dynamic Yunnan, the dance diva from China, Yang Liping, had spent more than a year traveling to remote villages of the 26 ethnic minority tribes in Yunnan and picked over 60 peasants who had a natural gift to sing and dance, to build an archive from which she re-created this rich feast of sight and sound.

Programme
Prologue – The Dawn of Life
I am the wild fire, I am the wind,
I have locked my soul in the drum,
And kept the seeds within me.
With a clap of thunder, plants begin to sprout,
Wake up! Spirit of the Drum, wake up!
 
Scene One – The Sun
The sun and the moon are forever chasing each another,
From east to west they follow the track.
They have taken the same route since Chaos opened up; 
Men and women are together 
Since they were born, and till they die -, 
They were joined upon the Creation of the Earth.
 
Drums in Yunnan top the rest of China in terms of variety and the number of myths related to them. In Yunnan, the drum is not only a musical instrument but also a symbol of the womb, a totem for genital worship.  Drums may be categorized by material, such as leather, stone, bronze and wood, or by their ethnic origins, known as the Sun Drum, the Mang Drum, the Riba Drum or the Dabei Drum.  In making wood drums, the Wa people would make a pair, one male and one female, and they would hold a ritual before cutting down the tree.
 
Scene Two – The Earth
Heaven is vast, but there is only one;
The earth is vast, but there is only one.
Do not say that flora does not speak, 
There is a reason for every living thing on earth.
My ancestors told me, 
The Earth came from the flesh and bones of the Creator.
I lay low, close to the earth, and there and then,
I could understand the myths of my ancestors.
 
Scene Three – The Land We Call Home
The ancient people of Yunnan believed that everything in nature was endowed with spirits and souls.  The people therefore have a deep reverence for the natural world around them, worshipping mountain gods, water gods, tree spirits and rock spirits. Virtually every village has a spirit tree and sacred forests.  Every minority tribe holds an annual offering to these gods and spirits.
 
Scene Four – Pilgrimage
The Tibetan Buddhists are devout believers, and making a pilgrimage to the Holy Mountain is their way of worshipping Nature.  The pilgrims often come a long way, spinning their praying wheels.  They would lie face down on the ground, as if to measure the road with their bodies, and kiss the earth at every step.  Come rain, come shine, in the scorching sun or in the snow, they would continue with their pilgrimage, their hearts aglow until they reach the Holy Mountain, where they would find Heaven of their dreams.
 
Epilogue – Spirit of the Peacock
The peacock is a totem of worship for the Dai people, who call it the Sun Bird.  It is also a symbol of love.  Yang Liping has created a dance idiom that captures the movements and forms of the bird in the most vivid, graceful movements.  Spirit of the Peacock expresses her yearning for a sacred and tranquil world.  In this Epilogue of Dynamic Yunnan, she has incorporated her solo dance with a group dance to become an exquisite piece of choreography with highly original formations and sound and lighting effects. The result is an uplifting, soul-stirring dance that evokes peace and harmony in life.

Performance Group
Yang Liping    Chief Choreographer/Artistic Director/Dancer 
Award-winning dancer in the Mainland Yang Liping is a Bai ethnic of Yunnan. In 1971, she started her dancing career in Xishuangbanna Prefecture Song and Dance Troupe. She was the lead dancer in the grand ethnic dance musical Peacock Princess, which was awarded the Gold Award for Performing Art of Yunnan in 1979. She came into prominence with Spirit of the Peacock, which she choreographed and performed herself, in 1986. This solo work also won for her a Class One Award for Originality and the First Prize in Performance at the 2nd All China Dance Competition. In 1990, she performed the piece at the closing ceremony of the 11th Asian Games in Beijing. In May 1992, Yang became the first dancer from the Mainland to visit Taiwan. In September 1994, she was awarded the title of  Outstanding Artist in Promoting Ethnic Unity and Development by the State Council of the Central Government. In December 1994, Spirit of the Peacock won the Gold Award at the Dance classics of the 20th Centery. Sunbird, a film she directed and in which she starred, won the Special Grand Prix of the Jury at the World Film Festival of Montreal in Canada. Yang has been on tour to many parts of the world for artistic exchange, having given dance performances in Singapore, the Philippines, the United States, Canada, Taiwan and Japan. She is also a life member of the Philippines National Association of Folk Dance. Between 2004 and 2009, Yang directed and choreographed the Ethnic Musical Spectacular Dynamic Yunnan – Search for Shangrila, its sister piece Echoes of Shangri-la as well as the Grand Tibetan Dance and Song Spectacular Tibetan Myth.
 
Yunnan Yangliping Arts Development Limited - Dynamic Yunnan Song and Dance Troupe
The Dynamic Yunnan Song and Dance Troupe was formed by Yang Liping in 2003 for the specific purpose of performing the ethnic musical spectacular from which it took its name, with Yang serving as Chief Choreographer and Chief Artistic Director.  In a bid to retain as much as possible the rustic charm of the land she called home, and to reproduce as faithfully as possible the indigenous dance and music elements, she visited the various tribal villages of Yunnan for auditions.  As a result, she picked over 60 peasants who had a natural gift to sing and dance.  Since then, the Dynamic Yunnan – Search for Shangrila has been staged almost 3000 shows,  including daily presentation in Kunming as well as overseas performances in Japan, the United States, Brazil and Argentina. In 2004, the Dynamic Yunnan – Search for Shangrila was the winner of  five Golden Awards at the Lotus Award Dance Competition in the Mainland.

Progamme Length
Running time of this performance is about 2 hours with an interval
 
 
Ticketing and Concession
Tickets available from 2 April onwards at URBTIX outlets
 
Half-price tickets available for full-time students, senior citizens aged 60 or above, people with disabilities and recipients of the Comprehensive Social Security Assistance (CSSA). (Limited tickets for students and CSSA recipients available on a first-come-first-served basis)
10% off for every purchase of 4-9 tickets at regular price, 15% off for 10-19 tickets, and 20% off for 20 tickets or more

Enquiries
Programme Enquiries: 2268 7323
Ticketing Enquiries & Reservations: 2734 9009
Address: 10 Salisbury Road, Tsim Sha Tsui, Kowloon, Hong Kong