Real Time China: Yao village keeps traditions alive

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In Shenshuidu, a Yao ethnic village in Shixing, south China's Guangdong Province, all are trying to keep its tradition of songs and dances alive and well, starting with its most iconic dance: the bamboo pole dance.

The trick is to dance fast enough so that the clicking poles don't snap at the dancers.

The kind of dancing is traditionally reserved for festive occasions, and passed down within the family.

But in Shenshuidu, primary and middle school students have been learning it in school.

Deng Jiamin, a six-grader among the lead dancers in her school, said she and her classmates used to practicing the dance in weekly classes devoted to dancing.

"I don't think it's difficult at all," she said, adding that "The trick is getting the beats. Twice on the outside, twice on the side."

Shenshuidu Yao Ethnic Village, with specially designed doors and windows /‍VCG Photo

Shenshuidu, like many other ethnic villages in China, is challenged by changing times. As local villagers are venturing out elsewhere for work, and the younger generation is glued to tablets, cell-phones and mainstream entertainment, local artists say they have to make extra efforts to keep the traditions alive.

Deng Yingfa, a Yao culture teacher, is responsible for keeping and demonstrating Yao essentials at the Shendushui school. He's behind the kind of extracurricular courses that little Jiamin took.

"Our culture is very precious," Deng told CGTN. "And for example, the dances and songs we sing don't have scores, they can only be passed down by word of mouth, to the next generation."

"It's important for the young to know them, before these arts are known by others," said Deng.

The village also has a plan to make its traditions better known to the outside world. Many hope that with better recognition, even the more difficult arts like embroidery could be well kept.

"We have the unique Yao ethnic culture, we are surrounded by green mountains, and we plan to build our village into a tourist spot with these characteristics in the coming years," Lu Yunjun, a local official, told CGTN. "It's development for preservation."