A culture brimming with vitality

Lincheng town in Huzhou city, Zhejiang, has also brought intangible cultural heritage, such as the Baiyelong dance, lion dance, Longshan dry boat and paired wrestling to villages.

"As the Asian Games start, we are organizing a variety of practices and activities to showcase the beautiful life, civilized customs and cultural charm of Lincheng," says Bai Lin, an official of Lincheng town. "Through these activities, we aim to subtly guide everyone to understand the Games and present our culture, thus contributing to the welcoming of the Asian Games.

"Next, we will continue to mobilize people to foster a strong atmosphere of love, support and participation in the Asian Games, showcasing cultural confidence, conveying the warmth of Lincheng and, together, add more color to the Asian Games!"

In addition to intangible cultural heritage experiences and learning activities organized spontaneously by the public, some specific performances are being showcased during the Asian Games and the Baiyelong dance is a highlight.

This traditional folk custom activity in Changxing county in Huzhou was selected as a provincial-level intangible cultural heritage in May 2005.

Unlike the props used in traditional Chinese dragon dances, which are normally covered by cloth of gold and red, the body in the Baiyelong dance is composed of hundreds of pink lotus petals.

The formation and development of the dance marks a notable variant in the evolution of lantern crafts. It has incorporated modern lantern-making techniques that use wire and spun silk as materials. The dragon's body is made of dozens of bamboo rings adorned with lotus petals. Ropes connect the rings, allowing them to be folded or extended.

When stacked, they resemble a series of large lotus flowers; when extended, they form a colorful dragon with petals serving as dragon scales, appearing almost lifelike.

These skyward-reaching dragons, surrounded by the vibrant green of lotus leaves that resemble magnificent clouds, roll and dive; at times, they soar courageously, revealing fearless strength, and sometimes, they twist and twine gracefully, expressing a sense of emotion and sentiment, providing an overwhelming artistic visual delight to the viewer.

The art troupe adjusted the original performance format from the dancing of four dragons to the connection between two.

Through the perspective of a group of backpackers who travel to Huzhou, it showcased scenes of rippling lake water, swaying lotus leaves, fluttering colorful butterflies, lotus flowers transforming into dragons, and dragons turning back into lotus flowers.

"Since only two dragons are used in this performance, and they need to coordinate with each other, we strive for perfection in our positioning, aiming to best present the art of Baiyelong dance," said performer Gu Yue.

"We hope that this dance, which has been performed in Changxing for over 200 years, can be presented to the whole world in a brand-new way on the stage of the Asian Games," said Gu Keni, the general director of the program.