Preserving Xinjiang's Culture: Artists are committed to centuries-old dancing heritage

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Protecting the traditional cultures of Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region remains a top priority for the Chinese government, as it highlighted in a recent White Paper. In Xinjiang's Makit county, artists are committed to carrying on a centuries-old dancing culture called Meshrep. CGTN's Zhao Yunfei reports.

To protect cultural heritage, traditional dancing is put on the stage.

The performance of Dolan Meshrep can be seen in villages of Makit county--the home of Dolan-- every week.

62-year-old Kadir Nurek is a second generation Dolan culture inheritor.

He started teaching Meshrep in the 1970s and so far has more than 50 apprentices.

KADIR NUREK DOLAN CULTURE INHERITOR "Dolan culture is passed down by our ancestors, generation by generation. We have the responsibility to hand it down, so that we won't lose it."

Dolan documents the lives of hunters, and Meshrep means gathering with poetry, music and dance.

People no longer hunt and for most young people, they learn Meshrep at art schools.

MAYRA ABLIKM MAKIT DOLAN ART TROUPE DANCER "We often invite some senior performers to give us some lectures. Or we go to visit them to understand how Dolan culture really feels, so that we can make our stage performances look more natural."

Meshrep was put into the UNESCO List of Intangible Cultural Heritages in 2010.

The list has brought nation-wide attention to preserving this traditional Uygur art.

Artists feel heavy burdens to carry it forward. Many believe the key is to integrate elements from modern life into the dancing.

Night falls, crowds gather at the Makit Dolan Culture Square.

It's a big outing for people from all walks of life.

They rise and dance with the pace of the rhythm.

It looks like dancing is embedded in the Uygur people's genes. But certainly, not in mine.

ZHAO YUNFEI MAKIT COUNTY, XINJIANG "The folk dance of Meshrep has turned into a kind of plaza dance. Group dancing has become a common scene every night here in downtown Makit. It is a leisure activity. That is how the traditional Dolan culture has merged into people's lives. Zhao Yunfei, CGTN, Makit county, Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region."