The history of Henan Province not only produced the earliest acrobats in China, but also held the largest "Hundred Dramas" performance in China. The book Liezi records: "Song Youlanzi, with skills in Song Yuanjun, called it, with double skills, doubled his body and went hand in hand; This is the earliest recorded acrobatic actress in Henan Province. In the sixth year of the Great Cause of Sui Dynasty, the largest "Hundred Dramas" performance in China reappeared, with not only a band of18,000 people and a performance team of more than 30,000 people, but also a huge theater stretching for 2500 feet in Bali and Fiona Fang. According to Sui Shu, the performance held outside the Duanmen Gate in Luoyang "always pursued the four directions for fun", "from fainting to the end of the month" and "ending at the end of the month" cost hundreds of millions of dollars, and the people "watched it from three hundred miles away", which reached the peak of "hundred plays" activities in history. After the Northern Song Dynasty, acrobatics flowed into the people of the Central Plains in large quantities, and its popularity was incomparable to that of other provinces and regions. For example, in the "Wanglaojia Acrobatic Village" in ma chang xiang, Taikang County, only 100 households have 8 acrobatic troupes. In the "Zhou Ying Magic Village" in Zhaozhuang Township, Baofeng County, 1000 households have only 33 magic groups and1000 artists. Xinye County has only three towns, namely Shi 'an, Shayan and Fanji, that is, 1200 professional monkeys. At the Taihaoling Temple Fair in Huaiyang County, there are as many as 20 or 30 acrobatic troupes from February to March 3 of the lunar calendar every year, and the festival of "ancestor worship" has become a spontaneous acrobatic festival.
Municipal acrobatic town
In June, 2004, 5438+1October, 265438+1October, China Federation of Literary and Art Circles awarded Zhoukou City and wuqiao county City the honor of "China Acrobatics Town", making Zhoukou the only city-level acrobatics town in China. Zhoukou acrobatics has a long history and is one of the important birthplaces of acrobatic art in China. According to historical records, as early as the Spring and Autumn Period, there were many folk artists in Zhoukou who made a living by juggling skills. Although the times have changed, acrobatic art is enduring in Zhoukou, and the annual Taihaoling Ancient Temple Fair in Huaiyang County is the stage for acrobatic performances. The strong artistic atmosphere of acrobatics has spawned many acrobatic households, acrobatic villages and acrobatic towns. According to incomplete statistics, there are more than 20 professional acrobatic groups 100, and 20 amateur acrobatic groups100, with nearly 15000 employees. From cities and counties to villages and towns, from basic training to high-tech competitions, various acrobatic troupes, magic troupes, animal training troupes and air show troupes are blooming everywhere in Zhoukou like flowers.
Country acrobatic town
200 1 10 At the 20th anniversary meeting of China Acrobatic Artists Association held in Beijing, Dawangzhuang Village, Wobei Town, Suning County, Hebei Province, and Dongbeizhuang Village, Puyang City, Henan Province were named as the first village-level "China Acrobatics Hometown" for the first time.
There are 3,080 people in Dawangzhuang Village, and 1.600 people are engaged in acrobatics, accounting for more than 1/2 of the whole village population. There are 15 local acrobatic classes and groups. Speaking of the history of acrobatics in Dawangzhuang, we can't help but talk about Zhang Zengcai, a famous acrobatic artist in China, who is called "Thrush Zhang". Zhang Zengcai was born in 1890 and died in 1964. He is famous for his ventriloquism, especially for imitating the songs of thrush birds, so his stage name is "Thrush Zhang".
Puyang is known as the "hometown of acrobatics" in Henan, and Dongbeizhuang in Puyang and Wuqiao in Hebei have been known as the "hometown of acrobatics in the north and south" since ancient times. Puyang acrobatics has a long history and has a broad mass base among the people. People in Dongbeizhuang Village love acrobatics. From the 70-year-old man to the 3-year-old urchin, almost everyone can play a few tricks. Since the founding of New China more than 50 years ago, the village has trained more than 400 acrobatic talents at home and abroad, and performed in 27 provinces and cities and more than 20 countries including North Korea, Japan and Germany. According to the statistics of local authorities, 37 people from Dongbeizhuang Village have been the head of acrobatic troupes at home and abroad, and 10 has won more than 30 trophies in domestic and international competitions, winning glory for the country. China's acrobatic art has a long history, which is a valuable and excellent cultural heritage of the Chinese nation.