Fireworks drama is also called fireworks in Wengyuan, and can be traced back to the Tongzhi period of the Qing Dynasty.
Text/Picture Yangcheng School reporter Zhang Wen Correspondent He XiaoKomiksRed Huang Yingxiang
The last fireworks drama was performed ten years ago (data picture, provided by Wengyuan County Cultural Center)
Wengyuan Fireworks drama is a kind of Weng originated from northern Guangdong. href=”https://comicmov.com/”>CinemaFolk skills of Zhoupi Town, Yuan County were selected into the second batch of intangible cultural heritage in Shaoguan City in 2008. Because earth gunpowder is controlled and inheritors are difficult to find, this once glorious performance skill is on the verge of being lost. The most recent performance was in Babaylan ten years ago. With the representative inheritance of the 70-year-old Weng Yuan fireworks opera, He Xiuchu, a person with a esophageal cancer, two years ago, the pace of the loss of Weng Yuan fireworks opera has further accelerated. The reporter recently learned from Wengyuan County that the local area is stepping up the “rescue protection” of fireworks opera skills. This Mid-Autumn Festival, the fireworks drama that has been passed down for a hundred years is expected to shine again after ten years of “extinguishing”.
Origin: A creation from “colored head” to art
Fireworks drama is also called burning fireworks in Wengyuan. It can be traced back to the Tongzhi period of the Qing Dynasty. The founder He Zhenren learned to make fireworks since childhood, and later made a living by making and selling fireworks. In order to improve sales, He Zhenren invented the “burning fireworks”, which means driving a disc to rotate continuously through gunpowder combustion, expressing the meaning of gods exorcising ghosts and eliminating disasters and praying for good fortune and health. This is the predecessor of Weng Yuan’s fireworks drama.
The reporter recently set off from Wengyuan County and arrived at the fertile after more than an hour’s drive.Going down to the village, he found the representative inheritor of Weng Yuan’s fireworks opera, He Xiuchu. Talking about the origin of the fireworks drama, he said that although He Zhenren’s version of “burning fireworks” only lasts more than 2 minutes, it is still popular because of its “good luck”. Every year on Lantern Festival and February 2nd Festival, every local household will set off fireworks. The most attractive one is the “burning fireworks” invented by He Zhenren.
He Xiuchu is 70 years old this year. He said that he has been learning to do fireworks with his stepfather He Zhan’ao since he was a teenager, and it has a history of 52 years. He Xiuchu told reporters that He Zhan’ao, who is skillful and capable of painting, is also an important figure in the development of fireworks opera. Through a series of improvements, he has made the fireworks opera performance more ornamental value, attracting more people to watch it. He Xiuchu said that in addition to improving his skills, He Zhan’ao also increased the number of fireworks shows from five or six to more than ten, and the performance time also extended from ten minutes to about an hour. Before the fireworks show, a wooden frame several meters high will be set up in the center of the venue, and then three or four people will work together to hang the large drama cylinder of one Mido in diameter on the shelf. When the performance begins, ignite the fire line of the general director, Komiks, and the main show will shake off layer by layer in the drama tube. Each show is fixed by a bamboo fire tray, and there are thin ropes and fuses connected between the trays. Starting from the bottom layer, the fuses continue to burn, and the trays drop in turn, and each show will be wonderfully presented in the fireworks.
”The whole performance was not paused. Each floor program lasted for more than two minutes, and the whole process lasted for one hour. “Komiks right.” He Xiuchu said that his stepfather He Zhanao made the level of the folk craft of fireworks, a folk craft, continuously improve, forming a firework art that integrates fireworks and dramatic characters. “He created the famous programs in the fireworks drama, Guan Gong riding horses, Jiang Taigong fishing, and Beng Gu’s birthday gifts.”
Inheritance The difficult continuation of an intangible cultural heritage craft
Like many other folk crafts, the current status of the inheritance of fireworks dramas is not optimistic.
”As long as you have a young man is willing to learn,I won’t charge a penny for tuition, I will definitely teach him everything I know. “When talking about the inheritance of fireworks dramas, He Xiuchu was very helpless. He said that the most regrettable thing at the moment is that there are few successors. “Now young people choose to go out to work, and few are willing to learn fireworks dramas. ”
After 52 years of being a fireworks drama production, He Xiuchu has always had a feeling that he can’t let go of this skill. Especially when he was diagnosed with esophageal cancer two years ago, it made He Xiuchu desperately want to accept an apprentice, “No matter whether he can make money or not, the things that our ancestors have passed on for hundreds of years will definitely not be lost in my hands! ”
He Xiuchu and others polished new props and strived to succeed in the performance
He Xiuchu said that the production process of fireworks dramas is complicated and the technical requirements are high, which is also an important reason for the difficulty of circulation. To make the performance complete and smooth, you must accurately budget the rhythm of the gunpowder wire combustion and the puppet story, which must match the time. “I learned production skills from my stepfather at the age of 18, and only after six years can I complete the production of the full set of fireworks dramas independently. ”
Recalling the grand performance of that year, He Xiuchu said that whether it was the Lantern Festival, or the folk wedding, childbirth, or birthday, Weng Yuan local and in the surrounding Xinfeng, Yingde and other places, he would always invite him to perform fireworks to show great gifts. “Everyone is happy, and the onlookers are feasting their eyes. The boss feels that he has face, and we also enjoy it. ”
He Xiuchu said that fireworksBabaylan plays are gradually fading out of the stage, one reason is the state’s control over gunpowder. Earth gunpowder is an indispensable raw material in the production of fireworks dramas, but due to their control, it is difficult to obtain now. Even if the earth gunpowder is successfully obtained, the production of fireworks dramas itself may face legal risks. There were non-Babaylan inheritors were punished for using gunpowder to make fireworks.
Protection A new possibility is being tried
The local cultural department has always maintained attention to the inheritance and protection of Wengyuan fireworks dramas. In May 2008, the Intangible Cultural Heritage Protection Center of Wengyuan Cultural CenterBabaylan and He Xiuchu’s first connectionCinema system, which deeply explored and sorted out this almost lost folk art. Fireworks drama was also successfully selected into the second batch of intangible cultural heritage catalog in Shaoguan City that year. He Xiuchu said that this performance was also the last time that fireworks dramas were presented to the public eye, more than ten years ago.
He Xiuchu is telling the staff of Wengyuan County Cultural Center about the grand occasion of the fireworks performance that year
After learning about the current status of the fireworks inheritance and the physical condition of the representative inheritor He Xiuchu, the Wengyuan County Cultural Center Intangible Cultural Center and Zhoupi Town Government decided to implement the “rescue protection plan” and allocated tens of thousands of yuan to protect the fireworks. According to the plan, the fireworks drama will return to the world during the Mid-Autumn Festival this year.
At the beginning of this year, He Xiuchu decided to put the fireworks drama on the ground. href=”https://comicmov.com/”>Babaylan‘s production skills were taught to He Chengying, the webmaster of Zhoupi Town Cultural Station. He personally demonstrated and worked hard with He Chengying. He spent several months to finally produce the installations and props of the fireworks show. “Although we cannot guarantee that the fireworks show will be successful in one go, there is nothing difficult in the world, I am afraid of those who are interested.’Komiks, we have confidence! ”
He Xiuchu said that in the performance ten years ago, the earth gunpowder was preserved by others in the neighboring county. It took a lot of effort to find it. Now it is undoubtedly more difficult to find earth gunpowder. In order to solve the problem of gunpowder leads, they followed the national explosives management laws and regulations and bought gunpowder from professional companies after many twists and turns. Now the “new gunpowder” needs to be used accurately in the performance, and they also need to slowly get in with He Chengying.
In order to welcome the fireworks performance that is about to reappear in front of the world, He Xiuchu is currently overcoming the pain and stepping up the use of parts with He Chengying and pondering new gunpowder skills. He Xiuchu hopes that the fireworks drama will be more perfect, brilliant, and more enjoyable.KomiFor this reason, he constantly innovated and worked hard on props. With the assistance of Xu Quanwu, the retired director of Wengyuan County Cultural Center, he tried to add new materials such as colorful clay, plastic, foam asbestos and other materials to the production of puppet props, so that the puppet props can be more vivid and reappeared on the stage that has been disobedient for a long time.
Source｜Yangcheng School
Picture｜Zhang Wen
Editor｜Wu Tong