Yue Xiang – Representative Inheritor of Dai Peacock Dance in Ruili City, Dehong 

Basic Information

Name: Yue Xiang(约相): the Inheritor of Dai Peacock Dance(傣族孔雀舞)
Sex: Male
Race: Dai Ethnic Minority
Birth:Born in 1948
Hometown: Jiedong Village, Mengmao Town, Ruili City, Dehong Dai and Jingpo Autonomous Prefecture.(德宏傣族景颇族自治州瑞丽市勐卯镇姐东村)

Life Experiece

Yue Xiang(约相) loved Peacock Dance from an early age. When he was young, he practiced peacock dance with the peacock dance master, Shuaigen sabu(帅哏撒卜) and Mao Xiang(毛相). He raises peacocks, observes their living habits and movements, puts them into the forest and observes their strolling, playing, showing wings and so on. He applies peacocks’ graceful postures such as entering the forest, taking off, falling asleep, waking up, drinking water and showing wings and so on to peacock dancing. Therefore, he dances peacock dancing so well. As a peacock dancer, at the age of 18, Yue Xiang became a well-known peacock dancer. He also created a unique set of Peacock Boxing(孔雀拳), which innovated and developed the traditional peacock dance.

Reputation

He participated in national performances and competitions held by the Ministry of Culture twice and won awards, and twice performed Peacock Boxing in the National Minority Games(全国少数民族运动会) and won awards. He has also been invited to perform and exchange culture in Shenzhen(深圳), Guangzhou(广州), Taiwan(台湾) and Myanmar. Art schools and performing groups in Beijing(北京), Shanghai(上海) and Sichuan(四川) have come to Ruili to learn peacock dance from him. At present, he has trained more than 20 peacock dance inheritors, among whom his sons, daughters-in-law, grandsons and granddaughters are all the peacock dancer. It plays an important role in the inheritance and development of the peacock dance.

Chinese Version:
http://www.ynich.cn/view-ml-13110-823.html
http://www.ihchina.cn/Article/Index/detail?id=1274

Translated by Translated by Emily -Wang/王海玲