Choreography: Chasing the Sun

Dance Drama “Kwafu Chasing the Sun”

Fusion of Eastern & Western Cultures

I have been fond of Chinese mythology since I was a child. All over the world, it is men who create human beings, but in China it is Nuwa, a woman. The whole world is “Sun God surveying the sky”, and it is invincible. China’s Kuafu went to chase after Japan.

But on the other hand, if you open your eyes, you can find that “chasing the sun”, “catching the sun”, “seeking the sun” and “calling the sun” in the oldest myths of all ethnic groups in the birthplace of culture and art all over the world can be found everywhere. Yes, there are many similarities and minor differences. This proves that “chasing the sun” is a story matrix and prototype of universal significance in the development of human civilization. It shows that it is hoped to interpret the laws of the operation of the sun, moon and stars, explore the mysteries of the universe, and be fully curious about the unknown world outside the earth. Why does China’s Kuafu chase after Japan? Isn’t that just to explore the laws of the movement of the sun, moon and stars? As far as I know, the laws of celestial phenomena are often presented in cycles of thousands of years. The Chinese people’s research on this aspect can be traced back to thousands of years ago, and the records left by the observation and research institutes on celestial phenomena stretch for thousands of years without interruption. Therefore, for example, many of the latest discoveries in today’s literature are found in the data recorded in Chinese oracle bone inscriptions, and this phenomenon also happened in a certain year to confirm its law.

So East and West, ancient and modern meet here. Represented by Kuafu, these ancient Chinese astronomers and scientists (our ancestors who persisted in observing and recording phenomena) are in ideal and Spiritually tied together. So at the moment when I saw the Columbia spacecraft take off and explode in public, I suddenly realized that Kuafu is a typical example of all the brave people who explore the unknown world, and the embodiment of all scientists who devote themselves to science and truth. Kuafu’s journey is continued by today’s plans to develop space, and will continue in the future history of mankind. It was this opportunity that gave me a unique understanding of Kuafu, a figure in ancient Chinese mythology, and expressed and interpreted Kuafu as a representative of a scientist with a brand-new concept. When I received a creative grant from the McNight Foundation, I didn’t hesitate to create the dance drama Chasing the Sun.

In fact, the original “Shan Hai Jing” recorded “Kufu Chasing the Sun” in just a few lines. “A man wanted to catch up with the sun, but he died of thirst and burned to death. Before he died, he dropped the walking stick he carried with him and turned it into a piece of paper. Taolin, quenching the thirst for future generations.” It hardly constitutes a script. But when he was superimposed on the scene I witnessed today of the Columbia manned spaceship exploding in mid-air, the typical image of a condensed, fearless scientist came alive before my eyes. They are linked together, and a complete story of human cosmic exploration emerges in my mind: at the beginning of the dance drama, a bamboo pole is erected on the ground. Record the law of the movement of the sun and the moon. Later, he described how he bid farewell to his parents, wife and children in order to understand the laws of the solar survey. He suffered from hunger and cold all the way, perseverance and dialogue with the moon. The information is thrown into the world… This is the first time for Kuafu’s explanation. It seems that it is also the first to pay tribute to scientists in the form of dance drama. This should be the contribution of the dance drama “Chasing the Sun”.

But problems arose one after another. I have always emphasized that a good work must not only be profound in content, but also must be vividly expressed, especially in an art with a strong sense of form such as dance. Kuafu and the various Shinjuku he encountered when he was exploring the universe, what are they like and what kind of body language do they have? For example, the moon, Chinese people are accustomed to mentioning the moon in their minds, and the person who immediately jumps out is “Chang’e”, but this one who stole the elixir Feitian and can never return to the world again, staying alone in the Guanghan Palace, “Chang’e”, and The Luna in my mind who opened his heart and gently accepted the “Kuafu-Human” is not the same thing at all. I abandoned the traditional habitual thinking, and completely followed my inner feeling: Luna chose Mifa, a ballerina, to play the role. The image of the moon god in the center of the play.

However, Kuafu’s action theme is based on Shandong Guzi Yangko, with a strong local flavor from the earth, but it is quite heroic. So when he broke into the moon and suddenly met Luna, there was a wonderful spark, and there was a pas de deux that had never been seen in any Western ballet or Chinese dance drama, as though each spoke a dialect unfamiliar to the other , but trying to communicate and accept. The characters in this pas de deux are distinct, novel and full of drama, which is refreshing and has no sense of deja vu at all.

As soon as the idea is opened, everything is clear, and the same is true for the other constellations of metal, wood, water, fire, and earth. They belong to the same big family as the earth, like brothers and sisters, have something in common, and have their own personalities – their own. Language Features. The moment they met, they presented a wonderful scene that they had never met before and seemed to be familiar with each other: Kuafu’s folk and Zhongxing’s modern dance met, not only not incompatible, but with distinct personalities. In short, in this one hour and fifteen minute dance drama, I broke the box and swayed freely, including Chinese classical dance, folk dance, folk dance, modern dance, ballet, and even Shaolin Kungfu, etc. It’s just that they no longer exist in the original meaning, but start from the shaping of characters, and all kinds of languages ​​are used by me. The unity is fused in the whole of the newborn, Chasing the Sun.

The question is, is this still Chinese dance? Yes, of course. “Kwafu Chasing the Sun” comes from the depths of Chinese culture. It is the essence of Chinese culture and our unique wealth. As for dance vocabulary, it serves to shape characters. I prefer the Chinese word “traditional” to the word traditional. Because the word “biography” clearly shows that this is a dynamic concept. It’s not an antique that’s been put there immutably. An action, when you place it in a certain context, is loaded with pending cultural information. But if you take it apart, it’s just one element of body language. It can change its function by changing a method and recombining it. Human beings have long understood that smelting alloys creates extremely sharp swords. Puccini could turn the Chinese folk song “Jasmine” into a famous piece in his Western opera “Turandot”. Why can’t our Chinese dance absorb all the essence of Western art and learn from others’ strengths? So on the basis of in-depth study of traditional Chinese dance, my attitude towards Western dance culture is to embrace it. For me, all vocabulary as long as it is in line with the character’s personality, specific environment, atmosphere and emotion, are welcome. Various cultures have their strengths and can complement each other. If you can connect them, then you can really have both sides, integrate and communicate, and form a grand view.

Interestingly, this time I used the theater of “The Legend of the White Snake” again. Summarizing the experience of previous failures, without a canopy, we took advantage of the situation and designed an inverted semicircular plastic film device, which was then illuminated from the back. The blue light is like a beautiful moon, and the strong orange light is the sun, and all the other things are included. It is harmonious and novel with the arched brick wall that haunted me in “The Legend of the White Snake”, and it fits the poetic dance language very beautifully. In particular, Kuafu’s last “hair-smearing” cut through a big hole in the plastic film and jumped into the sun. The amazing effect was impossible in the original three-wall theater. Failure is the mother of success, and the shortness of “The Legend of the White Snake” makes “Chasing the Sun” long. Learning to adapt to a variety of different theaters, actively using it, which in turn prompted me to create new inspirations, complement each other.

This time it’s exactly the way American professional gigs work. It is also a brand new experience for me to form a production crew of “Chasing the Sun” through social recruitment for rehearsal and performance. It also allowed me to meet many professional dancers. “Legend of the White Snake”, “Chasing the Sun”… out of the Chinese circle; out of the dance world, out of the so-called traditional Chinese dance… It made me realize that although there are many differences between Chinese and Western cultures, human nature is the same. We are all human beings with many common concerns, and in fact, the commonalities far outweigh the differences. Grasping these eternal mothers, which are common to mankind, made me greatly enlightened: I found the best melting point for the fusion of Eastern and Western cultures.

In order to realize the desire to share the broad and profound Chinese art with the world, I will continue to boldly meet new challenges again and again, turn over new pages in my creative history, and broaden my creative path. I invited Mr. Xu Hangdong to dinner yesterday (a young dancer from New York who played Kuafu). Coincidentally, the small note that I got after the meal actually said, “When you have grasped the right direction, you will not turn back and go in this direction without regrets.” I think this is the spirit of Kuafu.

舞剧《夸父追日》

寻找东西方文化交融的最佳熔点


我从小喜欢中国神话，全世界，创造人类的都是男人，中国却是女娲——一个女人。全世界都是“日神巡天”，不可一世。中国的夸父竟然去追日。

但反过来，放开眼界，又可以发现，在全世界文化艺术发源处，各民族最古老的神话中，“追日”、“赶日”、“寻日”、“喊日”，比比皆是，大同小异，不胜枚举。这证明，“追日”在人类文明发展过程中是一个具有普遍意义的故事母体、原型。它说明希望能解读日月星辰运作的规律，探寻宇宙的奥秘，对地球之外的未知世界充分好奇是人类普遍关注的主题。中国的夸父为什么要追日？不也就是要探寻日月星辰的运行的规律吗？据我知道，天象的规律常常是以千百年的周期来呈现的。而中国人对这方面的研究可以上溯到千、万年前，对天象的观察研究所留下来的记录绵延数千年，从未间断。所以如今天文学的许多最新发现都从中国的甲骨文记录的资料里来寻找，这个现象在某某年什么时候同样发生过，以印证它的规律。

于是东方与西方、远古与近代在这里相会。以夸父为代表，这些中国远古天文学家、科学家们（那些坚持不懈，对现象作观察并记录的我们的祖先们）在和今天继续解开宇宙奥秘、穷追不舍的伟大人物在理想和精神上紧紧地连在一起。所以在看到美国哥伦比亚号飞船升空当众爆炸的那一刻，我忽然意识到，夸父正是人类探索未知世界的所有勇敢人物的典型，是一切为科学，为真理献身的科学家的化身。夸父的行程，由当今开发太空的计划继续着，并还将在人类未来的历史中继续下去。就是这个契机，让我对《夸父》这个中国古老神话中的人物，有了自己独特的理解，以全新的观念，即把夸父作为一个科学家的代表去表现、去诠释。当我获得McNight基金会授予的创作奖金时，毫不犹豫地决定创编舞剧《追日》。

    其实，原来《山海经》中记载的“夸父追日”只有短短几行，“一个人欲追上太阳，最后渴死、烧死。他临终前扔下随身携带的手杖，化成了一片桃林，为后人解渴。”几乎构成不一个剧本。但当他和今天我亲眼目睹的美国哥伦比亚载人宇宙飞船当空爆炸的情景叠印在一起，一个浓缩的，无畏无惧的科学家的典型形象便活跃在我眼前。他们连缀在一起，一个人类宇宙探险的完整的故事便浮现在我的脑海：舞剧一开头的场面就是地上竖了一根竹杆，夸父正在专注地观察丈量竹竿影子的长短，并用牛胛骨记录下日月运行的规律。 以后描写了他为了解太阳巡天的规律而告别父母妻儿，一路饥寒交迫，坚韧不拔以及与月亮对话，懈逅众星，一往无前，在被太阳烧死前，将用生命换得的科学记载资料抛向人间……对夸父这样的解释，这是第一遭；以舞剧的形式，向科学家致敬，好像也是首创，这应该是《追日》这部舞剧的贡献。

    但问题接踵而至，我一直强调，一部好作品，不仅要内容深刻，更必须有生动地表现，特别舞蹈这样一门形式感特别强的艺术。夸父以及他在宇宙间遨游探险时，遇到的各种新宿，他们是什么样的，有什么样的形体语言？比如月亮，中国人习惯思维中一提月亮，马上跳出来的便是“嫦娥“，可这个偷吃了仙药飞天，再也回不了人间，待在广寒宫里孤寂的”嫦娥“，和我脑海中那个敞开胸怀，温柔的接纳了”夸父——人类“的月神完全不是一回事。我摒弃了那传统的习惯思维，而完全按照自己内心的感觉：月神选了Mifa这位芭蕾舞演员来担纲，动作语汇是芭蕾与朝鲜舞的混血，温柔恬静高雅圣洁；正符合我在《追日》这个剧中心目中的月神的形象。

而夸父的动作主题却以山东鼓子秧歌为本，带着来自地球的浓浓乡土味却颇有英气。于是当他闯入月球和月神突然相遇后，就碰撞出了奇妙的火花，出现了一段在任何西方芭蕾舞或者中国舞剧中所从来没见过的双人舞，好像虽然各自操着对方不熟悉的方言，却在努力沟通，接纳。这段双人舞人物性格鲜明，既新颖又充满戏剧性，让人耳目一新，完全没有似曾相识之感。

    思路一经打开便一通百通，其他金、木、水、火、土各星宿一概如此，它们既和地球属于一个大家庭，像兄弟姐妹，有着某些共同处，又各有个性——自己的语言特点。他们见面的那一刻便呈现从未谋面又似曾相识的奇妙的场景：夸父的民间与众星的现代舞相逢，不仅没有格格不入，反倒是个性鲜明。总之，我在这部长达一个小时十五分钟的舞剧中，打破框框，自由挥洒，有中国古典舞、民间舞、民族舞，也有现代舞、芭蕾，甚至还有少林功夫，等等。只是它们已不是原来意义中的存在，而是从塑造人物出发，各种语言均为我所用。统一溶合在《追日》这个新生儿的整体中。

    问题来了，这样搞那还是不是中国舞？是，当然是。“夸父追日”来自中国文化的深处，是中国文化的精粹，是我们独有的财富。至于舞蹈语汇，则是为塑造人物服务的。与traditional这个词相比，我更喜欢中文“传统”这个词。因为那个“传”字清楚地显示了这是一个动态的概念。那不是一个放在那儿一成不变的古董。某个动作，当你把它放在某个特定的环境中时，它负荷着待定的文化信息。但如果剥离开来看，它只是身体语言中的一个元素。换一个方法重新组合，它就可以改变自己的功能。人类很早就懂得：炼合金制造出无比锋利的宝剑。普契尼可以把中国民歌《茉莉花》变成他的西方歌剧《图兰朵》中的名曲。我们中国舞蹈为什么就不能吸收西方艺术中的一切精华，博采眾长呢？所以在深入学习中国传统舞蹈的基础上，我对于西方舞蹈文化的态度是去拥抱它。对于我，一切语汇要只要是符合人物个性，特定环境气氛情感的，都来者不拒。各种文化都有它的长处，可以互补。如果能把它们连接打通，那就真正可以左右逢源，融会贯通，洋洋洒洒，形成大观。

    有意思的是，这次我用的又是《白蛇传》的剧场。总结以前失败的经验，没有天幕，我们便因势利导，设计了一个倒半圆形的塑料薄膜装置，然后从后面打光。蓝光时就像美丽的月亮，而强烈的橙色光就是太阳，其他风花雪月，均囊括其中。和那堵《白蛇传》时困扰我的拱形的砖墙既协调且新颖，而且与诗意的舞蹈语言非常切合，美轮美奂。特别是夸父最后一个“窜毛”，把那层塑料薄膜穿破了个大洞，纵身跃入太阳的刹那，那惊人的效果是在原来三堵墙的剧场里不可能出现的。失败乃成功之母， 《白蛇传》的短成就了《追日》之长。学会适应各种不同的剧场，主动的去运用它，反过来又促使我拼发新的灵感，相得益彰。

    这次完全按照美国专业演出运作的方式。通过社会招聘组成《追日》演出剧组进行排练演出的，这对我也是一个全新的经验。也让我结识了很多专业舞蹈家。 《白蛇传》、《追日》……走出华人的圈子；走出舞界，走出所谓传统中国舞的框框 ……它让我认识到，虽然中西文化有许多差异，但人性是相通的。我们都是人类，有许多共同关心的问题，实际上，共性远远大于差异。把握这些人类共同的永恒的母体，使我大大开悟：找到了东西方文化交融的最佳熔点。

    为实现让世界分享博大精深中国艺术的愿望，不断大胆迎接一次次的新挑战，翻开我创作史上新的一页又一页，让我的创作路子越拓越宽。昨天请徐航东先生吃饭（从纽约请来饰演夸父的青年舞蹈家）。事有凑巧，饭后拿到的那张小纸条上竟然写着“当你把握了正确的方向就义无反顾，不怨无悔地朝这个方向走下去。”我想这就是夸父精神。