Jiaxian County Yangko Dance

Shaanxi
🎧  Listen to Introduction

This is a collective dance that is mainly performed during the Spring Festival. Generally, a large open space is chosen for the performance of Yangko. There are at least 30 to 50 actors and actresses, and at most hundreds of them. They are all heavily made-up and dressed as characters of various identities. They hold fans, colorful silks, etc., and are led by a leader (i.e., umbrella head) holding a flower umbrella to enter the performance venue with the accompaniment of gongs, drums and suona, twisting "cross steps", "three steps forward and one step back" or "two steps forward and two steps back". Then, a Yangko field with various patterns such as "twelve sickles", "five-pointed stars", "snake coiled with nine eggs", "date pits blooming randomly", "heaven and earth cards", "rolling mats", etc., and finally the umbrella head or other actors sing a few Yangko segments, and a performance is considered complete. Sometimes, after the collective Yangko performance, some small programs are added, such as kicking the field, moving water boats, playing lions, playing waist drums, etc. In recent years, there are also martial arts performances. Yangko is very popular in the north and south of the county. At the beginning of the first lunar month every year, the masses in each village who are enthusiastic about this performance activity will spontaneously organize themselves. After rehearsing for a day or two, they will go on stage and greet the whole village, young and old, door to door. Sometimes, when there are large-scale celebration activities, such as the opening of a road, the supply of tap water to homes, the completion of a new school, etc., the masses will also celebrate with Yangko to create a joyful and festive atmosphere. After the founding of New China, on the fifteenth day of the first lunar month every year, the county will mobilize the best Yangko troupes from urban and rural areas to come to the city for a performance. At that time, the county square is filled with the sound of gongs and drums, the sound of suona, the graceful dancing, and the crowds of spectators. There is an endless stream of foreign reporters coming here to collect folk songs every year.

Intangible culture related to the heritage

China tourist attractions related to the heritage