By YU LINTAO

Breathtaking Brilliance

By YU LINTAO

Chinese acrobatics seeks new ways to refine performances and expand markets

Acrobatics was among the first batch of Chinese art forms brought on to the world stage after China’s reforming and opening-up policy. It was also the first to enter the international performance market and is now cartwheeling along another road of development.

In the process of market-oriented reform,Chinese acrobatics has successfully integrated with other forms of performing arts,presenting the world a wonderful new face.But after this period of rapid development,China’s elite acrobats still need to deal with new problems so they may step up to a higher level.

Not just stunts any more

On June 28, 2010, Chinese acrobats presented a new show, namedCha, in a performing hall of the World Expo site in Shanghai. The vivid and exquisite performance and the Chinese-style stage set showed the audience the elegance of the art of tea, as well as the colorfulness and profundity of Chinese culture. The audiences were totally immersed in enjoying the art of tea itself, forgetting the show itself was being put across in the form of acrobatics which demands high-level feats and strength.

Since May 1,Cha, the latest work of Chengdu-based Battle Flag Acrobatics Troupe (BFAT), has been performed 184 times at the World Expo site in Shanghai,attracting and enthralling more than 300,000 visitors. The show thus has quickly garnered a reputation as the most innova-tive Chinese art performance of the Expo in Shanghai to date.

The word “cha” means tea in Chinese.The Chinese art of tea is deeply rooted in its culture and emphasizes its spirit much more than form. Meanwhile, acrobatics is considered an art combining highly developed skills, physical strength and courage. How can these two different arts be integrated?

Li Xining, President of BFAT and also the director and script writer ofCha, says although BFAT has won 45 gold medals in international competitions in recent years,the high dif fi culty of feats does not represent the current level of Chinese acrobatics.The art form has now developed into a comprehensive one that features richer cultural elements and integration with other forms of art.Chais a trial of that type.

“It is a blend of acrobatics, music,dance, drama and martial arts, fully interpreting Chinese tea culture from different perspectives,” said Li.

Similar toCha, other acrobatic works such as theSwan Lakeof Guangzhou-based Soldiers’ Acrobatics Troupe also represent the great achievement of contemporary Chinese acrobatics. For five years,Swan Lake, an innovative acrobatic stage work,has traveled all over Europe. Wherever it was performed, it was warmly welcomed.Even in Russia, the home of the balletSwan Lake, the audiences were totally moved by this classy Chinese version of ballet. An ingenious mix of ballet, music, drama and the highest level of Chinese acrobatic skills,such as dancing ballet on shoulders and tops of heads, created wonderment.

Another successful Chinese acrobatic performance is ERA-Intersection of Time, a multimedia theatrical spectacle jointly produced by the China Art and Entertainment Group and Shanghai Media Group. By the end of this June, there had been 1,884 performances in China for a total box of fi ce take of 190 million yuan ($28 million), an outstanding showing for an acrobatic show in the domestic market.

From shows of stunts to an integrated performing art, from variety shows to storytelling performances with plots and heroes,Chinese acrobatics has completed a historic leap in 10 years.

More challenges ahead

The superb skills of Chinese acrobats are known worldwide. They won gold medals in international competitions every year and were invited by many world famous circuses such as Cirque du Soleil, a Canadian entertainment company.

“But this is still not enough,” said Ning Genfu, Vice President of the China Acrobats Association, stressing that acrobats should not only master acrobatic techniques, but also need to know dance,music and even acting. Ning said the most urgent problem was Chinese acrobatics lacking “the soul of the stage.”

“Mostly, the performances by Chinese acrobats are applauded but without laughter. Audiences would only remember thrilling scenes but not the whole performance. This is because there is not a soul fi gure, or a clown, in Chinese acrobatics,”said Ning.

Clowns can arouse the passion and manipulate the interest of audiences. China still lacks tradition and experience in cultivating good clowns in acrobatic performances.Chinese artists need to learn more from Western counterparts in order to enable a profound change in the art form, Ning said.

Besides, to follow the development trend of modern acrobatics, Chinese acrobatics has also adopted many high technologies, such as sound and light effects, to perfect the stage effect.

However, Chinese acrobatic artists also insist it is necessary to use high technologies in performances, but there should not be total reliance on them.

Wu Jiatong, General Manager of Wu Promotion, a Beijing-based company specializing in performing arts promotion in China and abroad, says foreign audiences much prefer cultural fl avor contained in the highly dif fi cult stunts of Chinese acrobatics to special effects created by high technologies. This was evidenced by the success ofSwan Lakein the European market.

Zhang Yu, General Manager of the China Arts and Entertainment Group, says Chinese acrobatics is developing a promising presence in the international market.The international market, in this instance,does not mean merely the foreign market as the domestic market is an important part of the world market. They should be considered integral. At present, some Chinese acrobatic troupes overemphasized the overseas market, which will only make their future road narrower.

“The problem in Chinese acrobatics now remains a lack of comprehensive performing ability. The market for acrobatics that relies on stunts is limited worldwide,and the lack of up-and-coming talented personnel is another severe threat to its future.Chinese acrobatics also needs to foster more production and marketing personnel with global outlooks and thinking,” Zhang said.

During the past 10 years, Chinese acrobatics has performed brilliantly and opened up an audience base in the international market, winning high esteem as well as huge revenue. But as to how to sustain its further development, Chinese acrobatics still faces an acid test.