"This is a free advertisement", and discussing the controversy over "male peacock", Yang Liping brings "Peacock" to Shanghai

From August 30th to September 3rd, Yang Liping will lead the 2022 version of the dance drama "Peacock" and perform in seven consecutive performances at the Shanghai Grand Theatre. At the media conference on August 29th, Yang Liping revealed that this version is planned to be performed until January next year. "I will accompany young dancers until January next year. I have several new works in progress," she said

Yang Liping and Young Leading Actors Xiao Ronghao and Wang Silong in "Peacock"

"Peacock" is a classic stage image created by dancer Yang Liping. The 2022 version of the dance drama "Peacock" gathers the essence of Yang Liping's dance art and her years of accumulation. Since September last year, it has been on a national tour and has performed in over 20 cities, with over a hundred performances. Last December, "Peacock" flew to the Shanghai Grand Theatre, with seven performances and one ticket hard to come by. After a gap of 8 months, "Peacock" returned.

In the "Peacock" tour, the male peacock's appearance and dance movements have attracted attention and discussion. Regarding this, Yang Liping smiled and said, "This is a free advertisement. After all, there are few viewers entering the theater, only they know the truth and what dance looks like."

Over the past 50 years of her stage career, Yang Liping has gone through ups and downs along the way. She confidently told the media, "Bravery is a quality that a woman must possess, believe in herself. The peacock is the ultimate aspiration of people for beauty. It is a great blessing to be able to dance" The Peacock "well, dance exceptionally, and deeply into people's hearts. Style is like a person, dance is like a person, and I think this is the greatest praise. If a person has been on stage for too long, they need to find something for them. If they don't even find something for you, it means you have no value at all."

Yang Liping is interviewed by the media at the Shanghai Grand Theatre

Yang Liping also conducted a technical analysis of the male peacock dance section. "The death of the male peacock is so difficult, and every muscle of the dancer is exposed on stage, which reflects her technical skills. His struggle when he falls reflects the cruelty of the world, and death will definitely come." Yang Liping, who is constantly striving for excellence, once considered replacing the music for this dance section. "I feel that the music doesn't have a strong sense of nationality, and after thinking about it, I still haven't changed it because the sound of the piano has a sense of granularity and tension."

Compared to last year's lineup in Shanghai, this year's male peacock has a new actor named Wang Silong. After graduating from Shanghai Dance School, he passed the entrance exam for North Dance and is now an actor in the Youth Dance Troupe of Beijing Dance Academy. "When the peacock died, I deeply felt it, and sometimes my spirit would be drained. I felt like the first male peacock actor, Teacher Wang Di, was looking at me. On stage, the male peacock was so revealing that he needed his muscles to tremble and exert strength. In fact, he was dancing to exhaustion at that time, and my state coincided with that of the male peacock. Everything was just right, just right."

Wang Silong

After 70 performances in "Peacock", Wang Silong recalled that when he first joined Yang Liping's tour team, he constantly adjusted and meticulously crafted every performance. Even during meals, Teacher Yang would discuss the work with us. With her presence, we had a backbone. "

The same goes for the Shanghai media meeting. Yang Liping, like a big parent, gathered young actors to sit closer, making it easier for the camera to shoot and directing the TV station's position. Throughout the interview, she held a microphone and raised it for different actors as they spoke.

In 1988, Yang Liping made her first appearance at the CCTV Spring Festival Gala, stunning audiences across the country with her ethereal and ethereal performance of "The Spirit of Sparrows". After possessing the "form" and "spirit" of a peacock, she is still not satisfied. She wants to tell more rich and profound stories about the "peacock". The 2022 version of the dance drama "Peacock" revolves around the two eternal themes of life and love, divided into four chapters: spring, summer, autumn, and winter, showcasing the mutual integration of life and nature. Through stage art, it presents a friendly exploration of the world and a questioning of life and human nature, projecting a humanistic sentiment of the integration of life and art.

As a special performance, Yang Liping participated in the "Winter" chapter of "The Peacock", presenting the beauty of life inquiry as the peacock dances in the snow and rebirth when all things wither. "I walk through winter on stage every time, as if seeing my own life. As the number of performances increases, my psychological feelings become more and more diverse," said Yang Liping.

Yang Liping in "Peacock"

The 2022 version of the dance drama "Peacock" is not only a stunning reproduction of Yang Liping's "Peacock", but also a continuation of the "Peacock" dance art. Yang Liping positions herself as the "convener", allowing more young dancers to lead and tap into her energy on stage. "The main purpose of the 2022 version of" Peacock "is to allow new dancers and newcomers to pass on their legacy. Everyone's life is only a few decades long, so I am playing the peacock in winter, depicting the moment when dust settles and life yearns. The peacock passes away with a beautiful feeling, and in the end, spring will come again, and new life will emerge. I think this performance is in the form of a dance drama, telling the life of a person or a peacock in one and a half hours. Spring, summer, autumn, and winter change seasons, giving birth, aging, illness, and death to all of humanity." "I interpret the theme of life with the most oriental peacock image," Yang Liping explained.

"Firstly, we need to pass on a good work to the younger generation of audiences. Secondly, as predecessors, we should have the responsibility to pass on the art and culture to the next generation of dancers, helping them bloom their respective charms." Speaking of the cast of the new version of "Peacock", Yang Liping praised, "I saw excellent mental and physical states from the actors in this version, whether they were playing peacocks or crows, they were very compatible with the characters."

The 2022 version of Peacock