Fireworks drama is also called the fireworks burning in Wengyuan locally by Komiks 1960 witch cloth draw, and can be traced back to the Tongzhi period of the Qing Dynasty.
Text/Picture Babaylan 1990 cloth draw Yangcheng School reporter Zhang Wen Correspondent He Xiaohong Huang Yingxiang
The last fireworks drama was ten years since its last performance (data picture, provided by Wengyuan County Cultural Center)
Wengyuan Fireworks drama is a folk technique originating from Zhoupi Town, Wengyuan County, northern Guangdong. Cinema 1950 witch cloth draw, and was selected into the second batch of intangible cultural heritage in Shaoguan City in 2008. Because earth and gunpowder are under control and inheritors are difficult to find, this once glorious performance skill is on the verge of losing, and the last performance was ten years ago. With the 70-year-old representative inheritor of Weng Yuan’s fireworks drama, He Xiuchu, diagnosed with esophageal cancer two years ago, the pace of the loss of Weng Yuan’s fireworks drama has further accelerated. The reporter recently learned from Wengyuan County that the local government is stepping up the “rescue protection” of fireworks opera skills. This Mid-Autumn Festival, the fireworks drama that has been passed down for a hundred years in Cinema 1950 witch cloth draw is expected to shine again after ten years of “extinguishing”.
Origin: A creation from “colored head” to art
Babaylan 1990 cloth draw Fireworks drama is also called burning fireworks in Wengyuan. It can be traced back to the Tongzhi period of the Qing Dynasty. The founder He Zhenren learned to make fireworks since childhood, and later made a living by making and selling fireworks. In order to improve sales, He Zhenren invented the “burning fireworks”, which means driving a disc to rotate continuously through gunpowder combustion, expressing the meaning of exorcising ghosts and eliminating disasters. This is the predecessor of Weng Yuan’s fireworks drama.
The reporter recently set off from Wengyuan County, and after more than an hour’s drive, he arrived at Wuxia Village and found WengyuanThe representative inheritor of the fireworks drama, He Xiuchu, is the old man. Talking about the origin of the fireworks drama, he said that although He Zhenren’s version of “burning fireworks” only lasts more than 2 minutes, it is still popular because of its “good luck”. Every year on Lantern Festival and February 2nd Festival, every local household will set off fireworks. The most attractive one is the “burning fireworks” invented by He Zhenren.
Old man He Xiuchu is 70 years old this year. He said that he has been learning to do fireworks with his stepfather He Zhan’ao since he was a teenager, and it has a history of 52 years. He Xiuchu told reporters that He Zhan’ao, who is skillful and capable of painting, is also an important figure in the development of fireworks opera. Through a series of improvements, he made the fireworks performance more ornamental value and attracted more people to watch. He Xiuchu said that in addition to improving his skills, He Zhan’ao also increased the number of fireworks shows from five or six to more than ten, and the performance time also extended from ten minutes to about an hour.
Before the fireworks show, a wooden frame several meters high will be set up in the center of the venue, and then three or four people will work together to hang the large play cylinder with a diameter of more than one meter on the rack. When the performance begins, ignite the general fuse, and layers of programs will be shaken off from the big show. Babaylan 1990 clothes drawEach program is fixed by a bamboo fire-insulating tray, with thin ropes and fuses connected between the trays. Starting from the bottom layer, the fuse continues to burn, and the trays drop in turn, and each program will be presented wonderfully in the fireworks.
”The entire tableBabaylan 1990 cloth drawThe performance was not paused in the middle, and each layer of the program was two minutes, and the whole process lasted about an hour.” He Xiuchu said that his stepfather He Zhan’ao made the level of fireworks, a folk craft, continuously improve, forming a firework art that integrates fireworks and dramatic characters. “Babaylan 1990 cloth drawThe famous programs in fireworks dramasKomiks 1960 witch clothes drawGuan Gong riding horses, Jiang Taigong fishing, Beng Gu’s birthday, etc. were all created by him.”
Inheritance The difficult extension of an intangible cultural heritage skillCinema 1950 witch clothes drawContinuation
Like many other folk skills, the current status of fireworks dramas is not optimistic.
”As long as there are young people who are willing to learn, I will not charge a penny for tuition, and I will definitely pass on everything I know to him.” When talking about the inheritance of fireworks dramas, He Xiuchu was very helpless. He said that the most regrettable thing at the moment is that there are few successors. “Now young people choose to go out to work, and few are willing to learn fireworks dramas.”
After 52 years of being engaged in the production of fireworks dramas, He Xiuchu always had an unsatisfactory feeling about this skill, especially when he was diagnosed with esophageal cancer two years ago, which made He Xiuchu desperately want to accept an apprentice. “No matter whether he can make money or not, the things that our ancestors have passed on for hundreds of years must not be lost in my hands!”Komiks 1960 witch clothes draw
He Xiuchu and others polish new props and strive to succeed in the performance
He Xiuchu said that the production process of fireworks dramas is complicated and the technical requirements are high, which is also an important reason for the difficulty of circulation. To make the performance complete and smooth, you must accurately budget the rhythm of the fire powder wire combustion and the puppet story. In terms of time, Cinema 1950 witch cloth draw must match, “I learned production skills from my stepfather at the age of 18, and it will be possible to Cinema 1950 witch cloth draw independently completed the full set of fireworks drama production. ”
Reply to Komiks 1960 witch cloth drawRecalling the grand performance of that year, He Xiuchu said that he didn’t care about it once.For Lantern Festival, or folk weddings, children and birthdays, people in Weng Yuan and the surrounding areas of Xinfeng and Yingde will always invite him to perform fireworks operas to show great gifts. “Everyone is happy, and the onlookers are feasting their eyes. The boss feels face-saving, and we enjoy it.” He Xiuchu said that fireworks operas gradually fade out of the stage, because the state controls gunpowder. Earth-gunpowder is an essential raw material in the production of fireworks dramas Komiks 1960 witch cloth draw, but due to its regulation, it is now difficult to obtain. Even if you successfully obtain earth gunpowder, the production of fireworks dramas itself may face legal risks. Some intangible cultural heritage inheritors were once punished for using gunpowder to make fireworks.
Protection A new possibility is being tried
The local cultural department has always maintained attention to the inheritance and protection of Wengyuan fireworks dramas. In May 2008, the Intangible Cultural Heritage Protection Center of Wengyuan County Cultural Center contacted He Xiuchu to deeply explore this almost lost folk art. Komiks 1960 witch cloth draw was successfully selected as the second batch of intangible cultural heritage catalog in Shaoguan City that year. He Xiuchu said that this performance was also the last time that the fireworks show was presented to the public eye, more than ten years ago.
He Xiuchu is telling the staff of Wengyuan County Cultural Center about the grand occasion of the performance of the fireworks drama that yearCinema 1950 witch cloth draw
After learning about the current status of the fireworks drama inheritance and the physical condition of the representative inheritor He Xiuchu, the Intangible Cultural Heritage Protection Center of Wengyuan County Cultural Center and the Zhoupi Town Government decided to implement the “rescue protection plan” and allocated tens of thousands of yuan to protect the fireworks drama skills. According to the plan, this year’s Mid-Autumn FestivalKomiks 1960 witch clothes drawThe fireworks drama will be restored to the world.
At the beginning of this year, He Xiuchu decided to make the fireworks dramaCinema 1950 witch clothes Draw teaches his skills to He Chengying, the webmaster of Zhoupi Town Cultural Station. He personally demonstrated and worked hard with He Chengying. He spent several months to finally produce the installations and props of the fireworks show. “Although they cannot guarantee that the fireworks show will be successful in one go, ‘Nothing is difficult in the world, I am afraid of those who are determined’, we have confidence!”
He Xiuchu said that in the performance ten years ago, the earth gunpowder was preserved by others in the neighboring county, and it took a lot of effort to find it. It is undoubtedly more difficult to find earth gunpowder now. In order to solve the problem of gunpowder lead, they followed the national explosives management laws and regulations and bought gunpowder from professional companies after many twists and turns. Now the “new gunpowder” must be used accurately in the performance, and Babaylan 1990 clothes drawI need to slowly get along with He Chengying.
In order to welcome the fireworks performance that is about to reappear in front of the world, He Xiuchu is currently overcoming her illness and stepping up her efforts to make parts and figure out new techniques for using gunpowder. He Xiu initially hoped that the fireworks drama would be more perfect, outstanding and more enjoyable. For this reason, he continued to innovate and worked hard on props. With the assistance of Xu Quanwu, the retired director of Wengyuan County Cultural Center, he tried to add colorful clay, plastic, foam asbestos and other new materials to the production of wooden props, in order to make puppet props more vivid and reappear on the stage that has been disastrous for a long time.
Source｜Yangcheng School
Picture｜Zhang Wen
Editor｜Wu Tong