Promotional material for Dongpo: Life in Poems Photo: Courtesy of Poly Theatre

A modern dance poem drama inspired by the life and works of Su Dongpo, one of the most beloved names in Chinese history and culture, was staged in Beijing from Friday to Sunday.    

Dongpo: Life in Poems is a tribute to the legendary poet, painter, calligrapher, and statesman who lived in the Song Dynasty (960-1279). The show uses modern dance language to express the spirit of Dongpo, and communicates with the ancient sage through dance moves. The magnificent landscapes and graceful rivers in his poems are transformed into abstract dances.

All the poems in the drama are presented in the form of calligraphy and seal carving. This stimulates the Chinese people's longing for traditional culture, and enables the audience to feel the unique aesthetic and spiritual experience brought by calligraphy.

The dance drama showcases the core of the Chinese spirit nurtured by poetry. It creatively integrates poetry, traditional Chinese painting, calligraphy, seal carving, guqin (a seven-stringed plucked instrument), opera, martial arts and other elements of traditional culture into modern dance. 

It offers a comprehensive audio-visual experience of sound, dance, poetry, and painting, and deeply extracts the essence of Chinese classical philosophy and aesthetics. It explores the contemporary expression of Chinese culture with an international artistic vision, and combines traditional Chinese aesthetics and modern connotations. 

After Beijing, the modern dance poem drama will also return to the poet's hometown in Chengdu, Southwest China's Sichuan Province, from December 8 to 10, and then head to the Shaanxi Grand Theater in Xi'an from December 15 to 16.