The revival of Dunhuang dance in contemporary choreography in China

Archive of Scientific Articles

ISSUE:

Pan-Art. 2025. Volume 5. Issue 3

COLLECTION:

Art of dancing

All issues

Abstract. Images of music and dance on the frescoes in Dunhuang are a valuable legacy of ancient Chinese culture. The complexity of studying Dunhuang fresco painting and translating its elements into the language of the body lies in a comprehensive analysis of dance art, which captured the influence of religion, as well as the development and evolution of Chinese dance as a result of the exchange and fusion of Chinese and European cultures. Since the second half of the 20th century, modern dance artists, choreographers, and educators in China have returned to the history of Dunhuang dances. Currently, the deepening of the problematic is happening both along the line of identifying the connection between the historical past of Dunhuang and in the area of analyzing the foundations of multiculturalism. The aim of this study is to identify the reasons and show the specifics of the stages of the formation of Dunhuang dance as a phenomenon of cultural and artistic transformation. The work clarifies the methodology for the development of Dunhuang dance, which constitutes the scientific novelty of the study. The author theorizes the connection between the images of the Dunhuang frescoes and the plastic language of modern Chinese dance theater. For the first time, the importance of three historical stages in the formation of the expressive means of the traditional Dunhuang dance style is emphasized for art history. This approach, on the one hand, introduces a new subject of study for the visual reconstruction of Dunhuang choreography, and, on the other hand, its scenic integration into ballet art. The author's translation of texts from scientific, popular science, and artistic Chinese literature is included in the field of art historical research for the first time. On this basis, an analysis of the choreographic methods and approaches taught by the Soviet ballet master and educator P. A. Gusev in China and which were used to create the folk dance drama "Silk Road, Flowers Rain" was conducted. As a result, in this study, the ballet "Dunhuang" is defined as a representative form of synthesis: a) traditional Chinese art and b) classical ballet - for the first time on the basis of adapting historical evidence, scientific and artistic approaches of Chinese scientists for Russian art history in the field of choreographic education, culture and art.