Chinese people in Fengcheng celebrate the Year of the Dragon together - a record of the large-scale stage play "Mulan"

Chinese people in Fengcheng celebrate the Year of the Dragon together - a record of the large-scale stage play "Mulan" (Contributed by Ji Ren of Phoenix City) The spring breeze is majestic, and the dragon soars in the Year of the Dragon. 20…

>Phoenix City Chinese celebrate the Year of the Dragon - A record of the large-scale stage play "Mulan" (contributed by Phoenix City Jiren) The spring breeze is mighty, and in the Year of the Dragon, the dragon soars. On January 28, 2012, the sixth day of the first lunar month in the Year of the Dragon, Phoenix, Arizona was already full of spring flowers and willows. As the entire Chinese community celebrated the New Year, a traditional Chinese historical story of Hua Mulan, a woman well known to women and children, who disguised herself as a man and joined the army in place of her father, kicked off at the Phoenix Theater. The choreographers of the Phoenix Martial Arts Society, based on the original historical records, used novel creative techniques to tell the story of the ever-famous Hua Mulan, combining traditional Chinese martial arts with dance, and using an artistic performance form that combines hardness and softness to present her in front of the audience in a brand new way. As the lights gradually turned up, young Mulan was seen seriously practicing martial arts with her father and dancing with her mother. As the war scenes of armies and iron horses appeared on the projection screen, the audience seemed to be brought into an ancient battlefield, which was shocking. When receiving the emperor's summons, Mulan couldn't bear her elderly father to go to war again. The three actors of Mulan used dance and Bagua boxing to vividly express Mulan's deep love for her father, but her inner conflict and struggle, and her mixed feelings. The warriors lined up wearing armor, bright green coats, red turbans, and red belts looked heroic on the stage. While the audience was dazzled by the true reappearance of the historical battlefield, the large stage background and projection screen presented ever-changing pictures of Mulan's historical story created by the teachers and students of the Phoenix Martial Arts Society, adding endless artistic conception and atmosphere to the performance. As the plot changes, little Mulan slowly grows up, and martial arts and dance sometimes differ and sometimes merge into one. There are 14 girls of different ages playing Mulan in the whole performance. They are able to perform both literary and martial arts. Not only do they interpret the tenderness of the girl Mulan very well, but they also put on a military uniform and join the army in place of her father. Her perseverance on the battlefield and her bravery in desperate battles are fully reflected. When Hua Mulan, who played the role of the Four in One, made outstanding military exploits and returned triumphantly, the stage was filled with excitement. There were songs and dances on the stage to celebrate Mulan's return home, and the audience applauded and cheered continuously. The entire performance runs through Chinese classical and traditional dances, drama performances and boxing, swordsmanship, knife skills, stick skills, etc. The audience for this performance was packed, with nearly a quarter of the audience being non-Chinese. They sincerely loved traditional Chinese culture. The stage play "Mulan" not only allows the audience to appreciate the performing arts of Chinese martial arts, dance, and drama, but also feels the perfect combination of strength and softness. Especially being able to see Chinese and non-Chinese students playing the heroine Hua Mulan overseas is really a source of pride for us Chinese people. At the same time, this successful performance not only received strong support from various Chinese associations in Phoenix and Meisha Middle School, but also received full assistance and participation from the Confucius Institute at Arizona State University. The Phoenix Martial Arts Academy has only been established for a year, and the ability to produce such a creative and high-level large-scale stage play in just a few months has amazed the audience. This is also the result of the joint efforts of all the teachers and students of the Phoenix Martial Arts Academy. The wonderful performance was over, but the audience still refused to leave. An old overseas Chinese said excitedly that this was the most successful and professional performance organized by a Chinese group that he had seen in Phoenix for decades. What impresses us most is that the Phoenix Martial Arts Society has pushed traditional martial arts, dance and performing arts into an unprecedented new art field.