Next Generations

Day 5: Our trip continued with a visit to two more Miao villages in the Guizhou region. In the first we heard the most incredible singing so far on the trip, causing all of us to gather around with various recording equipment to catch the sounds. The dancing was also the most interesting to watch, the small steps replaced by wide fluid steps and swinging arms. Apparently the group came from another town and performed for us in a village that was not theirs. Were they professionals hired for the day? Impossible to get a straight answer from the local organizers. We were able to speak with some of the locals however, who watched on with some sadness telling us that they too had their own dances but had not organized themselves in time to show us something.

Between the morning and afternoon visits we stop off at a local school where a group of school children have prepared a dance routine for us. Their energy and enthusiasm is amazing. The kids dance in colorful costumes with a mix of traditional steps and contemporary rhythms. At the end of the show they are super happy to be photographed with us and speak to us in fragmented English, with some super funny results. One of the main problems in the region is how to preserve the Miao culture heritage? The gym teacher here teaches the Miao dances to his students as part of a new 'experimental' curriculum that aims to bring traditional folk arts from the region to the students.

The second and last village we visited gave the most touching and perhaps the most strange performance for us so far. In a basketball court beside the main road a makeshift performance space was set up with a leafy decorated gateway though which we had to pass. The villagers performed a ritual dance which included the killing of a duck and the sprinkling of it's blood in a semi circle, a ritual that we later learned they usually performed knee deep in the river. Apparently 500 years ago the town had prayed for water so fervently with this dance that they received a stream. They continued to perform the ritual ever since in order to honor their ancestors, even during the cultural revolution when they had to do so in secret. A few years ago the government built a dam that caused the whole town to be submerged in water. The villagers were obliged to move to this present location where they now look onto a dry field and a new housing development.